Capital journal. (Salem, Or.) 1919-1980, 1920-04-20
Orchard Soils In
Need of Fertilizer
Declare Experts

OlS5uH college,. Cor
wallis, April 20.-Oregon fruit grow
bers Interested in maintaining the fer
tiiity of their orchard soils as an es-
sential to continuous fruit production
may now learn some of the most i'm.
portant results of fertility expert
ments that have engaged the attention
LOT the experiment station at the ag-
ricultural college and the two branch
stations at Hood River and Talent.
These findings are embodied in q
new station bulletin, FERTILIZERS for
Oregon orchards" written by c.. /.
Lewis, former chief OF horticulture
at the college, and DR.. f. C. Reimer
and Gordon G. Brown.
The disadvantage of delaying the
fertility provisions till the penalty
falls is indicated in the report as fol-
lows:
"In orchard surveys made in two
fruit districts in 1908 and 1909, at
%tention was called by the writer to
the need for growers to supply their
soils with more organic matter and
keep up the supply of nitrogen. Lit
tie attention was paid to the advice,
few of the growers taking steps to
keep their soils from becoming de-
pleted. and as a result the orchards
gradually ~deteriorated.
Crisis Caused by Neglect
"By 1912 a crisis arose. Low prices
ruled in tn emarket and: coupled with
the low prices, many of the orchards
were producing small yields Of fruit,
often of very poor quality. Many Of
the trees were making feeble growth
The leaves were thin and yellow. The
bloom was poor. and there was o
very small percentage of set. Much
of the fruit was pitted with the So
called fruit pit, or bitter pit, some.
times called cor rot. The apples
tended to be small, smooth and dull
colored, and the trees were being at
tackled by various functional troubles
such as little leaf, apple rosette and
die back, sometimes called winter
kill. The stations then took up the
fertility questions in a large way,
both with mixed fertilizers and nj
trates. In general most results from
mixed fertilizers showed negative
while on many soils with certain class
,es Of fruits the nitrates gave excel
lent results.
Hints Offered for Experiments
Choose a very typical area of the
orchard, have at least a dozen trees
for each plot; choose high grade
quickly available salts and apply
them at least q month before the
trees bloom; vary the amount from {
to 10 pounds per tree, according &c
the size of the tree. For ordinary beai
ing apple trees five pounds should b.
sufficient, but for extremely large
trees as much as 10 pounds might b.
desirable.
Plot Five to 10 pounds of nj
trate of soda or sulfate of ammonia
Plot 2--Five to 10 pounds of sui
fate Of potash.
Plot 3--Five to 10 pounds of super
phosphate.
Plot Alive to 10 pounds each o
nitrate Of soda and sulfate of potash
Plot 5-Five to 10 pounds each 0
nitrate Of soda and superphosphate
Plot Give to 10 pounds each Q
nitrate Of soda, superphosphate an
potash. <
Plot From one to two ton
] ground limestone to the acre.
II response comes from any O
these combinations. n will knox
what to buy to put on his orchard
and If he desires he can put on avail
able salts more slowly.
1t is particularly important tina
i 1.-The nitrate be spread about the tire
3 before it blooms, and that the salt
are early dissolved, II response is e.
J pected the first year.