Rogue River courier. (Grants Pass, Or.) 1886-1927, 1909-04-30
FR0STS NOT TO BE
FEARED In THIS COUNTRY
p. j. O'Gara, Assistant Pathologist
of the Agricultural Department
Writes Interestingly.


Rogue River valley to work out a
cheap and effective method of FROST
fighting. However, through the
work of John Gore last year, fine
crop of Bartlett pears was saved, and
this through a single smudging on
one night when the temperature
dropped low enough to do consider
able injury to orchards that were not
smudged. Mr.. Gore saved his fruit
by simply burning some old rails,
which he piled up at regular inter-
walls throughout the orchard This
year, not only has Mr.. Gore used
the same method with success, but
others have followed his example
The methods used have differed
somewhat in detail, but the results
have been uniformly good. 1t has
been shown that with ordinary COM
nonsense methods effective work
has been done at a minimum expen-
diture of money. Last year the
writer suggested that frost occur
rences should be anticipated by the
growers, so that when they came, all
would be in readiness. 1t was sug-
gested that the prunings Of the or
chards should be saved, that cheap
wood and rubbish which would be
readily inflammable should be Sc
cured and piled near the orchards.
1t was also suggested that old straw
and manure could be used. Crude oil
and tar were also spoken of but more
to be used to kindle the fires than
for the fires themselves. These sug-
gestions we're given before 1t was
known that Medford has, very near
by, large coal deposits, which furn-
ish very good coal and which can be
bought at the mines very reasonably.
During the past three weeks the
| MIlltl HdS uNtu III NOuoluhl NOuNh
with the growers who have been
smudging. These men have used
wood in the form of old rails, and
even newly cut wood, straw, manure,
shavings and planings, sawdust,
crude oil, coal and kerosene, the lat
ter being used mainly to kindle the
fires. Sawdust and shavings were
previously soaked with crude oil or
with kerosene to make them readily
inflammable, so that the fires might
be lighted in the shortest possible
time Crude oil, burned in fire pots
was used to very limited extent
The assistance that | have giver
the growers has been in the matter
/, of making the local forecast. have
; stated before how these fore
, casts are made, but through the sug
gestion of several growers, am Civ
. ing the method again in more minut,
detail so that ii may be more read
lily understood. 1t is evident tha
this work belongs to the United
States weather bureau, which Is on,
: of the bureaus of the department o
agriculture, but owing to the far
; that there is no forecastcr in tn
Rogue River valley, felt called up
: on to help the growers save thel
i crops from frost
" To forecast, even in local way, I
: is absolutely necessary to have Q
hand weather map, which Away
- shows the positions Of high and 10y
barometer and the directions whio
h these two kinds of weather are tax
ing. After these facts are knowr
the instrument which determines th
most important factor, namely, th
dew point, must be made use o
This instrument, technically know
! as a psychrometer, is simply tw
Thermometers, one bulb being Coz
:. cred with linen and the other le
= uncovered. The covered bulb Is we
ted and then the instrument
II whirlcd rapidly so as 20 cause evap'
ration. As soon as the mercury
, the thermometer with the coyere
- bulb reaches its lowest point, y
temperature Is read, and at the san
time the temperature of the dry bu
is also taken. With this data
hand, the dew point temperature
found in tables published by q
United States weather bureau.
Meaning OF Dew Point Tcmperatur
Everyone knows that the atmo
phere at all times contains, bcsid
oxygen, nitrogen and small quPni
g. ties OF other gases, water in the for
of vapor. II does not matter ho
n high or low the temperature may D
- the atmosphere always has son
!, water vapor in IT, II is almost II
b. possible to get absolutely dry a
There ls, however, false notion th
4 the air has a certain capacity {
moisture. We often hear such q
pressions az "The air is pnrtly 81.
urated with moisture" "The welg