Mountain Home maverick. [volume] (Mountain Home, Idaho) 1906-1911, 1906-05-24
ORCHARDS HEREABOUTS
IN EXCELLENT CONDITION
State Inspectors Find no San Jose and Lit
tie Curtis SCa|e---Fruit With
out Irrigation.

A. F. Hit, who holds the null
titudinous job of state dairy, food
and oil commissioner, horticultural
inspector, sealer and inspector of
weights and measures and bee in
spector, was in town yesterday, ac-
companied by B. F. Hurst, one of
his assistants, whose speciality is
the inspection of orchards.
Mr.. Hits presence here was at
first thought to be for the purpose
of putting a crimp in the business
of handling impure foods; as he has
been causing great grief of late along
this line among Boise dealers. To
a Maverick man, however, he stat
ed that such was not his object;
that he came here to consult with
Attorney Howie, who is president
of the state pure food board Mat
ters covered at this consultation he
refused to divulge.
Messrs. Hit and Hurst left last
evening for Pocatello, and the form
er stated that he will be heard from
there; that he has a dose of bad
medicine to mix in that town,
which will be administered to deal
ers in adulterated foods; but again
withheld details.
While here they inspected or
chards in and near town. They
found no trace of the San Jose
scale, the scourge of some fruit
sections, and in only four orchards
was the Curtis scale detected.
This is of slow growth and can
be eradicated if properly attended
to. The remedy is to spray dur
ing the dormant season with
solution of lime and sulphur. Mr.
Hit says that he discovered this
scale in Idaho few years ago, and
not knowing what it was, sent
sample to Washington and the ex-
perts in the agricultural department
identified it as the Curtis,
comparatively recent importation
from Europe, and expressed sur
prise that it had travelled so far
west at that time. 1t was doubt
less brought here on young trees
from eastern nurseries. He will
return here later in the season and
have the owners of these infected
orchards apply the remedy, which
will avoid the necessity of having
any of the fruit trees hereabouts
condemned.
Orchard Inspector Hurst asys that
he found fruit trees here in an un-
usually good condition and predicts
an excellent yield this season.
Mr. Hit ascertained from his
own investigation, what all resi-
dents know, that all through this
section there is water very near the
surface, from eight to ten feet.
This he learned from studying fruit
trees and their roots. Knowing
that last year there was no water
live without moisture, he, natural
ly, was curious to learn how it hap
pened that they are not all dead.
He found that old trees, the roots
of which had penetrated far into
the ground, had been little affected
by the drought, while the younger
ones had withered and died. And
this information led him to a very
interesting and important deduc-
ton; that in time, few years, an
orchard can be reared here that will
need no irrigation.
His plan to accomplish this, con-
densed, is more cultivation and less
irrigation. The more water that is
given a tree, nearer the surface will
its roots remain. Withhold water
and it's roots go down in search OF
it-another proof that old Mother
Nature was dead on to her job, and
forgot nothing worth while in formu-
lating her immutable laws Some
water must be supplied young
orchards, to give them a start; and
then the ground should be assidu.
ously cultivated, not two or three
inches as is the usual custom, but
five or six. To that depth the soil
: should be pulverized into dust
mulch, which effectually prevents
evaporation from below
Mr.. Hit urges the necessity oi
cutting off dead tops of not lonly fruit
& but shade trees. This will go fai
towards saving their lives, as well
as improving their appearance anc