Arizona republican., 1909-04-11

is any here, nevertheless they said
 that they thought it quite probable
 that there might be some infection.
 from the mere fact that trees have
 been imported without inspection,
 many of them from Florida, where
 the white fly is almost universally
 present; so nearly so, at least, that
 California quarantines against Flor
 ida as a whole.
 MT. Woods said that the white fly
 is a particularly hard pest to fight because it is so short lived, three weeks being sufficient to develop it from the egg to the mature fly; that it inhabits the foliage and the stems of the leaves and even the body of the tree. He said he would advise that the trees shipped in all be de- foliaged and the leaves burned and that every tree should be washed with a solution that would kill the scale, meaning of course the import ed trees. He said, moreover. that this should he done at the point of shipment instead of at this end, for the mere scattering of the leaves here might spread contagion if the trees were infected. Illustrating how hard it is to eradicate this pest once it gains foothold, Mir. Woods said that people who say white fly will not thrive in this climate are very much mistaken. He said that in the government hot houses in Washing
 ton, some of which are very hot, the trees became infected with the white fly. and it required seven sue cessive fumigations with hydrocyanic acid to destroy the pest, and that is a heroic treatment, one that is i'm possible in the open orchard.
 Mir Shaw. adding his testimony, said that they were already enter tai1ing the white fly in California and that he had spent s13,00O the last year in an effort to eradicate the pest from his orchard of 1,5OO acres While they are making good progress it is costing a tremendous amount of money, and, fearing to take chances on any further importa- tions from Florida, they had quaran- tined against the state entirely. He said he had no desire to knock" Florida, and in this the government officials joined, and added that if trees could be secured in Florida that were known to be free from the contagion, well and good, but the California people are not willing to take any further chances.
 They pointed out that the remedy lay in securing home grown trees. 1 developing the Arizona nurseries and raising here the trees that are known to be without pests. It will take longer to be sure, but it will | save money in the end. Mir. Shaw 1 said that the chief thing he had | noted since coming here was the | feverish anxiety of people to get l into the orange business and get | started quickly. That, he said, is a | mistake. This valley, while admira- ply adapted to orange culture wher- | ever the groves are secure from the | frosts, having the finest soil and | water. is over and above all a gen. | eral agricultural valley. There are | so many things that can be raised | here successfully, even incomparably, i that it is foolish to rush into orange | culture faster than the safest pos | sible conditions warrant. Primarily | the valley is an alfalfa and grain | country. Orange orchards are all | right so long as they can be planted | of good stock by those in a posi- l tion to wait and protect them, but l it must be borne in mind that there | are six years of waiting without rev enue, and a poor man cannot afford | to engage in the business on a large | scale and wait so long for returns | And it is better to wait until the | trees can be grown here so they will | be known to be free from any insect | pest.
 Mir. Shaw added tha: it might be charged that his remarks were made | as coming from a California grower who disliked the Arizona competi- tion. He said that no such motive | prompted him. On the contrary, if he sought to destroy the orange business of this valley he would encourage the importation of r'lorida trees wherever he could, knowing that once the white fly is abroad in the land the beautiful, clear-skinned ! Arizona fruit that now commands the top price would be a thing of the past. It would be the quickest, pos sible way for California to wipe the