Ashland tidings. [volume] (Ashland, Or.) 1876-1919, 1913-02-03
EXPERIMENTAL
FARM BUSY
TALENT STATION TRYING OUT
EUROPEAN TREES.
500 PEAR TREES ARE RECEIVED
Prof. Reimer Receiving Many For
eign Varieties for Trial at State
Farm Near Talent-Other Work
Being Planned.

A representative of the Tidings
visited the Talent branch of the Ore
gon Experiment Station this week
and found Professor Reimer, the
specialist in charge, busily engaged
in getting the farm in shape to put
out the large number of new varie-
ties of pears which are to receive a
tryout at the station. Professor
Reimer states that he has received
or has now on the way nearly 500
new varieties of pears which have
been imported from Europe for trial
Over 400 of these varieties come
from France alone, while the rest
come from England, Ireland, France
and Belgium.
These trees will be tested out with
view to determining their availa-
bility for the Rogue river valley, and
also as to the best methods of cul-
ture, pruning and the like.
The experiments will be by no
means confined to the foreign trees,
but all the leading American varie-
! ties will be included in the tests. At
present the station is devoting most
I'of its space to tests on pear trees,
in part Because Professor Reimer
and other students of the problem
| believe that the pear is the future
money-maker for this section. They
hold this belief because of the fact
that the area where pears can be
successfully grown, of good flavor
and keeping quality, is very much
more restricted than is that of either
apples or peaches, and that it will
| be much easier to maintain good
prices for a fruit that has a small
territory adapted to it than to do SO
in fruits like the apple and peach
which can be successfully raised over
large territory.
However, experiments are beins
! by no means restricted to pears, but
the work in regard to the apples and
peaches is being done largely
| through cooperation with orchard
lists who already have successful
tracts of these fruits.
Extensive experiments will also be
made with the growing of strawber.
ries, loganberries, raspberries and
other small fruits. The loganberry
as a Gamer, is, in the opinion OF
Professor Reimer, the coming berry
of Oregon. The east is showing a
surprising avidity for this fruit in
cans and it is said that it cannot
be successfully raised east of the
mountains, so that the west will al.
ways be sure of a good market.
Mr. Reimer, while favoring the
canneries as a market for the sur.
plus and Gull stock, in pears, apples
and peaches, believes that the pri.
mary aim of the growers of these
fruits should be to raise those which
! will market well fresh
The station is devoting itself al
! most exclusively to work along the
lines of soils, culture, pruning, etc.
and leaving the matter of fighting
( the pests to the pathologists of the
district, under Professor O'Gara.
Experimental work will also be
! done in vegetables of all kinds, al
the experimental farm.
The Tidings representative also
visited the Wagner Creek Nurseries
and had talk with Mr.. Lester, for
merly engaged in the governmental
work in California, along these
lines. Mr.. Lester comedies with Mr.
Reimer in the belief that one cause
of the failure of some fruit raisers
has been in planting fruits not adapt
ed to the soil and location. He says
that it has been a mistake to plant
so much of the bottom lands to
fruit; that fruit tree cannot stand
to have wet feet The bottom land,
in his opinion, should raise the
grain, etc, needed, while the fruit
| is raised in the foothills This in