Page 14 



BETTER FRUIT 



May, igig 



BETTER FRUIT 



An Illustrated Magazine Dcviilcil to llio Inlercsts 



of Modern Fruit (Irowing and Marketing. 



Published Monthly 



by 



Better Fruit Publishing Company 



70:! OreKoiiian Buililini; 

 PORTLAND, OREGON 



The Co-operative Association. 



Willi llie coming (if the rcadjustiiicnl 

 and rejuvenation of the fniit industry 

 indications are not lacking that co- 

 operation and organization among the 

 growers of the Northwest, which, with 

 few exceptions, has been in either a 

 dormant or backsliding stage during tlie 

 past few years, is again coming to the 

 front. In the scramble to market his 

 fruit for several years, due to adverse 

 conditions, the fruit grower in many 

 instances disregarded the great factor 

 that made the business a success for 

 him originally. Relieved of his worry 

 over tlie outlook for the future he is 

 now seeing that organization and co- 

 operation were the real points of 

 refuge that carried him througli the 

 troublous times. 



The standard of pack and grading, 

 laws governing defective fruit, ad- 

 vantages in marketing and shipping 

 and other beneficial things which have 

 proved to be the backbone of successful 

 fruit raising were all to a large extent 

 secured through organization — through 

 the co-operative association or union, 

 and it looks now as if the slogan of the 

 fruit grower is, or soon will be, "Back 

 to the co-operative association." 



Our Horticulturists. 



The time has not been so very distant 

 when the work being done by the ex- 

 pert horticulturist was not looked upon 

 by the fruit grower as being of any 

 great value. The problems confronting 

 the grower were many and because 

 they couldn't be solved or a remedy pro- 

 vided almost immediately the grower 

 in many instances became impatient 

 and cynical. He could observe the bad 

 effects of pests and tree diseases on his 

 fruit crop but he often couldn't dis- 

 cover the cause, and if he did was un- 

 able to provide a remedy. Following 

 the old-time practices of doctoring an 

 orchard he secured very little if any 

 beneficial results. The scoffing grower 

 didn't take into consideration that it 

 takes time, organization and investiga- 

 tion of a most rigorous nature to secure 

 these results. And he also failed to 

 consider that the establishment of ex- 

 perimental work in horticulture in the 

 Northwest was comparatively in its 

 early stages. 



Now, however, the trend of opinion 

 has completely changed. The success- 

 ful work done by the intelligent body 

 of men who have had charge of solving 

 the problems of the fruit grower 

 throughout the Northwest has made 

 itself so apparent to even the most 

 obtuse orchardman or fruit grower in 

 other lines that he is willing to rise up 

 and call the "professor" blessed. Of 

 course the expert has not solved all the 

 problems, yet — but he has solved many 



(if them and has organized and sys- 

 tematized his ell'orts so thoroughly that 

 he is able to cope with alnuist any situ- 

 ation. Painstaking research work has 

 provided him with the necessary infor- 

 mation to grapi)le with new problems 

 as they arise. More adequate equip- 

 ment to assist him in his work has been 

 provided, and last and perhaps not 

 least, he is being given the true appre- 

 ciation and co-operation of the men 

 that he is helping. 



While the fruit grower became dis- 

 couraged during the lean years and in 

 many instances neglected his orchard 

 or fruit farm, the horticultrist went on 

 his way keeping everlastingly at it; and 

 it is not too much to say — that now that 

 a new era has dawned for the fruitman 

 most of his success in the future will 

 be due to the fine work of the expert 

 who has provided him with new ideas, 

 new methods, new weapons and new 

 remedies with which to reach the goal 

 of success in fruit growing. 



Aphides. 



The War and the Fruit Industry. 



According to well informed and close 

 observers of the fruit industry, although 

 the war had a disturbing effect on the 

 industry and almost entirely cut off 

 foreign markets until the latter part of 

 1918, this fact was to a large extent a 

 blessing. Turned away from the big 

 markets abroad it was necessary to find 

 a wider market for American fruit at 

 home and the market was found. It is 

 stated by fruit experts that never in the 

 history of the deciduous fruit business 

 was there such a wide distribution of 

 apples and pears in home markets as in 

 1918, and the demand, in these new 

 markets, it is declared, has come to stay. 

 While many of the points that were 

 reached had been receiving supplies of 

 inferior fruit, little if any effort had 

 been made to furnish them with high 

 ciuality stock. It was found that in 

 almost every city of 10,000 population 

 or more that there was a market for a 

 certain quantity of fruit of the finest 

 quality and that the better class of buy- 

 ers, once having obtained fruit that was 

 perfect, are now insistent on getting it 

 in the future. 



It is this wider market at home as 

 well as the opening of the foreign mar- 

 kets abroad that is causing the Govern- 

 ment Information Bureau and others 

 who have studied the question to advise 

 the further planting of apples and pears 

 and to predict an increasing market for 

 the future. 



A Correction. 

 Through one of those unavoidable 

 errors that will sometimes occur in the 

 best regulated publications a cut rep- 

 resenting a page advertisement carried 

 by the Yakima Fruit Growers' Associa- 

 tion in the Saturday Evening Post dur- 

 ing 1918 was credited to the Yakima 

 Horticultural Union. Desiring to have 

 the press matter that it puts before its 

 readers accurate at all times Better 

 Fruit acknowledges and corrects the 

 mistake in this issue. 



Once theiT was sunie little aphides 

 Just as small as they could be, 



And they went to eatint? foliage. 

 All there "was upon a tree. 



And when all the leaves had vanished 



They moved to another one, 

 And they i>iily ''"ft the branches 



As they scampered in the sun. 



Millions of them kept on coming 

 As the days grew warm and bright. 



As their numbers kept increasing 

 They ate all green stuff in sight. 



They destroyed all kind of plant life 

 And they feasted on the grain; 



In their path they left destruction 

 Until the ladybugs came. 



They walked right up to those aphides 

 With no introduction planned. 



And when they had finished with them 

 There were no more in the land. 



— O. O. Smith. 



Keeping ladybugs in cold storage 

 through the winter to commence a 

 spring offensive against the army of 

 aphides is a new idea, but Horticultural 

 Inspector C. B. Wood of Yakima, 

 Washington, is sure it will be effective. 

 Last fall six pounds of ladybugs, num- 

 bering approximately 200,000, were col- 

 lected in the Walla Walla district and 

 as soon as they are thawed out will be 

 planted in the various parts of the 

 Yakima Valley to wage war on the 

 nimble and voracious aphide. The 

 thawing operation will be conducted 

 gradually until the ladybugs are in 

 prime condition for the fight. The 

 Yakima colony is part of a much larger 

 collection that will be used for the same 

 purpose elsewhere. 



Editorial Notes. 

 The W^ashington Legislature did a 

 good job when it defeated the Gellatly 

 cull-apple bill. It means a higher price 

 for quality fruit. 



"Better apple boxes" is a good slogan. 

 With fruit prices at their present and 

 prospective figures the grower can't 

 afford to have his fruit spoiled by poor 

 box material. 



It is quite evident that the Skookuin 

 packers' convention was a live one. 

 Apart from the instructive talks on co- 

 operation and advertising the meeting 

 resulted in constructive action that 

 ought to help the grower greatly. 



According to all reports apple blos- 

 soms in the Northwest appeared in most 

 districts promptly on schedule. In fact 

 in some sections they were unusually 

 early. Now if Jack Frost will grace- 

 fully retire until next fall the fruit 

 grower will be duly thankful. 



Added interest will be given the 

 article in this issue of Better Fruit 

 on "Summer vs. Winter Pruning," when 

 it is stated that it is from the pen of 

 a Hindu, M. Mitra, who is a student in 

 horticulture at the Ohio State Uni- 

 versity. Mr. Mitra handles his pruning 

 subject from a basis that will no doubt 

 attract the widespread attention of his 

 colleagues in horticulture. 



