The Kennewick courier. [volume] (Kennewick, Wash.) 1905-1914, 1908-01-31
To Prevent Frost Dama8e.

several OF our best strawberry men
have been carefully investigating
the problem and they have deter
mined that the method of burning
crude Oil in fire pots placed at regu-
lar intervals throughout the straw
berry fields and fruit orchards will
prevent the damage by means of the
heat produced and also the dense
smudge given off. This method
gives the best results with least cost
in time and labor. It is we'll known
here that as much injury results
from the sudden warming of the
chilled plant or fruit as from the
frost itself. 1t is very necessary to
counteract the effect of the early
morning rays of the sun. This can
be done by arranging the lighting
so that the pots will burn at least
half an hour after sunrise.
The pots are made of stove pipe
iron and hold about three quarts of
crude oil which will burn from four
to five hours. Forty to eighty pots
to the acre are used. If forty are
used the pots will be 33 feet apart.
By burning forty pots the tempera-
ture can be raised 5 or 6 degrees.
1t has been established by expert
ment and observation that by rails
ing the temperature 4 or 5 degrees
the frost damage would be largely
prevented and the large part of the
fruit crop saved. A government
bulletin places the damage point for
different fruits at the following tenn
peratures: Almonds in bud may
stand 2S degrees, but in blossom or
when fruit is setting will not stand
30 for two hours or more; apricots
are damaged when the fruit is set
ing if a temperature of 32 is main
tained for two or more hours; grapes
when budding are injured if the tenn
perature falls to 81; prunes in bud
are injured at 80; peaches and pears
will stand temperature as low as
20 if not too long continued. With
nearly all fruits some varieties will
stand low temperatures better than
Others
1t is difficult to get the oil but a
single barrel was secured the first of
the week and the necessary tests
have been made to determine just
the kind of oil needed.
At the instance of several interest
ed parties, Charles Conway made a
trip to Tacoma and made arrange
ments to ship in a tank-car of the
oil. 1t cannot be purchased in less
than car load lots. This necessitates
the additional expense of building
storage tank for the quantity of
oil. w. S. Harvey is making a can
vass of the Valley and taking orders
for the equipment and the oil. To
indicate accurately when the tenn
perature falls to the danger point an
electric alarm thermeter is used.
This device is so. arranged that the
moment indicator touches, the circu-
it plug set at the danger point the
electric circuit is completed and the
alarm bell begins to ring. The
alarm can be placed in the rancher's
sleeping room and will at once
arouse him to battle with Jack
Frost. One testimonial from
California fruit grower is given:
1.-THE pots having been filled with
crude oil, the thermometer was set
up in the apricot orchard and wired
into my room, distance of one and
half miles, and set to ring at SO
degrees. At 1:3O a. m. on the 18th
the bell began ringing. then took
eighteen men to the orchard and lit
400 pots in thirty-fve minutes,
covering an area of forty acres. We
kept the temperature at 80 degrees
while outside the protected area the
temperature fell to 81. This plan
of frost fighting is the only practicle
method that | have had the oppor
tunity of using during my expert
ence in fruit culture.
r. TcHERAssY, Foreman.
Grad. Agr. College
Lyons, France.