Arizona republican., 1909-04-11
SOUTH SIDE VISITED
 BY ORANGE EXPERTS
PLEASED WITH CONDITIONS
 ABOUT MESA.
The Things Necessary to be Done to
 Make the Citrus Industry Success

| as d cOinlnunily Ol cltruS ITullS lHe visit to the south side the past week
 of distinguished party is of interest. pr. Wood. assistant to
 the chief of the bureau of plant industry of the agriculture
 department at Washington; G. How
 ard Powell, also of the agricultural
 department, an expert on fruit trans portation and marketing, and also Ethan Allan Chase and son, Harry 1 Chase. of Riverside. California. were
 of the party. H. s. Reed of the re- clamation service accompanied the gentlemen to this place where they were met by Messrs. Spangler and Stapley in their autos and with pr. Chandler as guide, the party was complete.
 However, the importance of the visit to this section is not so much from the fact that men of such high
 standing in governmental affairs de-
 cided upon a trip to this particular
 section of the Salt River valley and
 will do more to advertise this sec
 ton than a good many men of lesser
 knowledge of the citrus industry, but
 the importance of the visit lies rather
 in the many points and sidelights
 given on the culture of the orange
 tree by men who have devoted their
 lives in getting these ideas.
 In the first place it might be well
 to say that the route of the party
 was to a point northeast of the city
 near the Highland canal thence south
 skirting the irrigated section by way
 of the Spangler Sheep company's
 holdings thence south to the Chand-
 Ter ranch for luncheon. Immediately
 after the noon meal, run was made
 in a northerly direction toward Mesa,
 but deviating toward the west before
 the city limits were reached and the
 course was direct toward Tempe.
 Tempe was passed to the right and
 the date farm was the next point
 on the itinerary. The journey was
 continued on down the river to the
 Bartlett Heard ranch and then the
 trip back to this place was made, the
 party coming through Tempe. The route is given to show that the terri tory covered included practically ev- cry kind of soil to be seen in this section. and possibly no greater va riety of soils could be found any place else on the south side in 1 another seventy mile drive which ] was the length of the one described | above It might be well to add here | for the benefit of those who are | skeptical on the uses of the auto for ] practical purposes that the trip was made without a hitch of any kind.
 At the outset it is needless to say | that the gentlemen who are visitors | to the valley were loud in their | nd hos in this the finest section in the United States. They even went farther and drew a fine distinction between the north and south sides of the river and gave it out as their unqualified opinion that the South Side has advantages and character istics over the North Side which place us in class ahead and by ourselves. However it is not the purpose of this article to recount the many compli- mentary remarks but rather to deal with the cautions for the uninitiated orange grower who expects in a few years to begin on an industry which in time will be the mainstay of the valley.
 The key note was that the only thing for the orange growers and prospec- tive orange growers was to get to- gether and form a strong organiZa- tion. They advocated cooperation at all times. This, they argued would be useful in getting concessions from the railroads. in fighting the pests that may come and in many ways which are bound to come upon g new industry unsolicited and from the rear without warning. Mir. Chase who is one of the largest orange growers in the world, having an or chard of over 1900 acres, and who is a man of over seventy years of age, struck upon a point which was de- cidedly timely and incidentally one that can be used in the community with a good deal of benefit. In re- gard to organization he said Co operation and organization is the only thing, it has been the salvation of the citrus industry of California, yet with all the resolutions to the ef- feet that a fly or the smut exists and a further resolve that the smut or the fly is and ought to be on the run or is being exterminated will not do the least bit of good. The only way to eXterminate the pest is to actually get out and exterminate it. Several thousand pests can be brought into the world on the limb of an orange tree while one resolu ton is being enthusiastically passed.
 The acreage in bearing orange groves in the Mesa section is limited at the present time, but within the next few years at the rate that the trees have been going in this season this will be one solid grove or prac- tically so. IL was with this thought in mind that Mir. Powell and Dr. Woods, both experts in the plant in- 1ustry cautioned the unintiated grow CTS to keep free of the pest. They strongly advised the early starting of an up to date nursery at this place and that the trees for planting be supplied from it. They further made the statement that no matter what guarantees may come from nursery owners or managers that there is absolutely no place in the United States where orange trees are propo- gated that is free from pests of some kind. However they made the point strong and unqualified that every tree coming into this section wheth- CT from California or Florida is liable