The Hood River glacier. (Hood River, Or.) 1889-1933, 1912-03-28
GROWERS HEAR
TALK OF EXPERTS

A large number of the growers of
the valley were present Saturday after
noon to hear the addresses of b. b.
Pratt, Of the POmological Offices of the
United States department of agrcul-
ture, and Prof. W. II. Lawrence,
county fruit Inspector, both of whom
told of past experiences with expert
ments conducted for the purpose Of
learning methods of preventing rot.
and remedies. Mr. Pratt has been con
ducting experiments in Portland this
winter. He was here last fall and
secured collection of apples for his
experiments.
1t is probable that Mr.. Pratt will be
stationed by his department in the val
ley this fall to more fully carry out the
experiments begun, which will deter
mine the keeping quality of apples
taken from different soils and from
trees of different ages and in different
stages of maturity. Prof Stubenauch
of the agricultural department. will
visit the valley at an early date and it
will then be decided AS to whether or
not Mr.. Pratt will remain here. The
departmnt has just so much money
from appropriations, Mr.. Pratt said
Saturday afternoon, ard an effort will
be made to have the growers cooperate
with it by leaning fruit for expert
ments. The fruit that is not spoiled
by the experiments will be sold and
the loss will be made good by the gov
eminent.
One OF the main objects of the
meeting was to warn the growers of
the destrutiveness of the spores of an
thracuose. These spores, which are
formed in the cankers seen on the
trees, are held in place by gelatinous
substance which becomes dissolved by
the absorption Of water in the fall of
the year and attack the apples. 1.-The
spores also attack ounces, said Prof.
Lawrence, "and if these spores we're
released and each could reach an apple,
they would destroy every apple that is
held in storage in the Hood River val
ley. so great is the number of them
that a single fruit will germlnate.
The first bulletin on anthracnose,
compiled by Dean A. B. Cordlcy, of
0. A. c., was published in 1900 Prof.
Lawrence little later. conducting ex-
periments in western Washington, con-
firmed the discoveries of Dean Cordley.
Winter before last Prof Lawrence ex-
perimented with a bunch of Greening
apples in Washington and noted, a
thing that had formerly aroused his
suspicious. that the growth was sim
liar to that of the canker on the trees.
He has been experimenting with cuI-
lures, the methods of which he ex-
planned Saturday, and has discovered
by inoculating fruit that the anthrac-
nose spore is the destructive agency
causing great deal of premature rot
ting.
Prof. Lawrence advises spraying this
fall with Bordeaux mixture. in order
that the fruit may be covered with the
mixture and attacking spores killed.
However, the disease may be cured
and the fall spraying made unneces-
sary by early spring sprayings, when
the trees have 20 leaves and all the
creyices may be reached The proper
method of mixing Bordeaux was dem
onslrated. The preparation is com
posed of milk lime and blue stone.
When poured together these cause the
formation of a membrane. The pour
ing operation should be so done as to
cause this membrane to be broken up
very minutely. otherwise it will settle
10 the bottom of the tank. The mem
brane spreading over and coating the
tree is the agency that kills the an
thracnCse spores. For making of lime
milk, Prof. Lawrence recommended