El Paso herald. (El Paso, Tex.) 1901-1931, 1914-03-21
Smudge Pots Save Fruit Crop
Frost Damage Friday Night
Proves Severe to
Some Trees.


While fruit crop valued at more
tnan $4,000 and covering over 1000
acres In the Rio Grande valleys was
damaged by the heavy frost of Friday
night and the peach, plum and apricot
n1ossoms blasIed on many Of the trees
IN the orchards Of the valley, smudge
pots kept the damage from being ex-
tensive.
SmUdge pots were kept burning on a
number of the fruit ranches in the
upper and lower valley all night Fri
day and the fruit saved from the
frost by this artificial means of rails
ing the temperature Of the air in the
orchards.
At NJ. J. CadwalIaders's ranch down
the valley 1000 smudge pots burning
crude oil were kept burning all night
and kept the temperature above the
freezing point during the night. At
the A S. ValdespinO and the T. d.
Porcher ranches in the lower valley
smudge pots were also used. Fruit
growers in the upper valley resOrted
to this eNpedient to save their peach,
plum and apricot crops. Where smudge
pots were not used, expert horticultur-
lists say that the blossoms were par
tally frosted throughout the valley, if
not totally destroyed. A few pear
trees were frost bitten, especially the
Kiefer variety, but there are few OF
these in the valley, as the principal
kind planted in both the valleys is the
Bartlett pear, which blooms later in
the season and is safer for a fruit
crop.
Winds Help Thursday Night.
The orchard crops were saved
Thursday night by the prevailing
winds and the damp, heavy atmOs-
phere- But Friday night was clear and
cold and the temperature dropped to
80 degrees by six o'clock Saturday
morning with heavy coating of frost
on the ground. The forecast for eat-
urday night is given at the weather
office to be fair and colder, which
means that any peach, plum or apricot
blossoms which were not destroyed
by the Friday night frost may be
caught by this anticipated cold, unless
smudge pots are again used.
Flowers NIDped.
Flowers and garden fruit in the city
were also nipped Friday night R L.
Harms, former city park commissioner,
says that klefer pear blossoms at his
garden in East El -Paso were destroyed
by the frost and that peach trees had
more than half of their blossoms killed.
However he says this is not as serious
as IL would seem, since peach trees
always bear too heavily and it is neces-
sary to thin them in order to get a
fine quality of the fruit Jack Frost
acted as a thinner for these trees, he
says.
Mr.. Harris says that this frost and
its effects upon the valley fruits
proves his contention that grapes are
the safest and best fruit crop for the
valleys. Grapes do not bloom until
late in April or early in May and al
ways escapes the frosts and freezes he
says. Mr. Harris says that any flower
ANNALS which have been planted in
the ground and are sprOuted were
killed although the more hardy flowers
were not injured.
Damage on West Side.
Peaches, apricots and pIums were
badly damaged on the west side of the
Mesilla valley. At J. H Wallace's
ranch, three miles from Canutillo, on
the west side, the apricOts were all
killed, few plums were saved and
the peaches destroyed, Mr.. Wallace
says No smudge pots were used on
the west side, but DR.. A E. Lawson,
at Anthony, on the east side of the
upper valley put out his smudge pots
and is believed to have saved his fruit