The Delta independent., 1908-06-26
more than music. So let US one and all
turn out and help herald in the glorious
Fourth.
TO THE FRUIT GROWERS ASSOCIA-
TIONS OF MONTROSE, MESA AND
DELTA COUNTIES.


Your committee, chosen to investi-
gate the various frost preventative de-
vices and to ascertain the cheapest and
most practicable safeguard against
frost damage to fruit as applicable to
our particular section and climate con-
ditions on the Western Slope of Colo
RADIO, have, as per previous arrange
ment and instructions, visited Redlands,
Riverside. Los Angeles, Fresno, San
Jose and other outlying sections in Cal
ifornia, where it seemed most advis-
able to investigate, and your committee
can truthfully affirm that, after inves-
tigating the various methods and
means of preventing frost damage to
fruit, throughout the fruit growing
district of California, which we visited,
we saw no individual demonstration of
what can be done by heat to prevent
frost damage, better than the expert
ments of few of our own energetic
citizens on the Western Slope of Colo
RADIO, during last April, and while un-
prepared and working under adverse
conditions, they have achieved success,
this having blazed the way for others
to follow They deserve the thanks of
our own people for their faith, courage
and energy.
In support of our own experiments
last spring, your committee has large
accumulation of corroborative evidence
which leads us to believe that there is
no necessity for grower to lose his
fruit crop under the degree of cold ex-
perience here last Spring.
We were somewhat surprised to learn
that the growers in California do not
generally resort to smudging (as they
call it, even in the sections where the
lowest temperatures are most pre-
valent, but we were able to find in
these sections few live, progressive,
energetic men who have practiced
smudging with various devises and ma
terials for several years, and always
with perfect success.
We located and investigated a num-
ber of interesting and successful ex-
periments, one or two which it seems
pertinent to speak of. The superinten-
dent of seven hundred acre orchard
of citrus fruits related to US his exper-
ience with section of this orchard,
the fruit on which was invariably killed
by severe freezing, and the Syndicate
owning the same had ordered these
trees grubbed out and the ground seed
ed to alfalfa. The superintendent
begged one more year to try and save
the crop, which he successfully did by
burning oil. Since then he has dis
carded oil and is burning coal in small
the result that these trees were not
grubbed out. but, with the aid of heat,
are each year maturing a crop.
A sample of this basket has been
forwarded to Grand Junction where it
may be seen and tested together with
other devices in the near future. The
cost Of this basket together with
stand upon which it sets is thirty cents.
1t is fair to say however in connection
with the obove, that this man dis
carded oil, which is much cheaper than
coal in California, and used the latter
for the reason that he claimed that the
burning oil left greasy SCOT upon the
fully grown fruit. We do not think
however that this deposit of SCOT would
be any objection in Col orado.
Many of the growers on the coast
still maintain that this smudge or
smoke ia the saving element for their
fruit. An interesting example of this
theory was superintendent of large
orchard in Santa Clara Co., who cut
five gallon oil cans in two, making two
pots of each can. These he filled with
crude oil, using forty to the acre.
When suggested to him that it was the
heat which brought him success, he
demured and maintained it was the
smudge or smoke. Your committee did
not press the point.
Right here it seems pertinent to say
that your committee, after thorough
investigation and study of the subject,
believe that smoke even in connection
with heat, forms but small element
towards frost prevention; that heat is
absolutely essential, and that smoke
without heat, in our climate, is practic-
ably worthless.
We now have oil and coal to be con-
sidered, both of which are available in
Colorado. and in the judgment of your
committee, both may be made very
effective for frost protection if intelli-
gently used by the growers. Under
our climatic conditions it would seem