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tion of farmers is assured to the extent of providing laboratory 

 facilities, orchards, labor and cars for transportation. 



This method of solving the plant disease problems of the 

 State has proved highly profitable to the growers. The actual 

 profits in dollars and cents which we are able to show prove 

 this, and the overwhelming demand for more fellowships from 

 many sections of the State indicate the enthusiasm for and the 

 confidence with which the hard headed farmers of New York 

 are turning to scientific methods in solving their plant disease 

 problems. 



A Member. I would like to know how you control bitter 

 rot on apples. 



Professor Whetzell. Now, before I can answer that ques- 

 tion, I must be sure I know what you are talking about. Bitter 

 rot of apples, as the plant doctors know it, isn't a disease of 

 New York and New England. It is a disease of the South. I 

 do not believe you have bitter rot. There was bitter rot in the 

 Hudson valley this year, but I think you mean a Baldwin spot, 

 a little brown spot under the skin, with a depression over it. 

 If you want to call it "bitter,'.' call it bitter pit. If you call it 

 bitter rot, the plant doctor thinks it a disease which occurs in 

 the South. It cannot be controlled by spraying. To explain 

 to you briefly, we think it happens this way: It is a very com- 

 mon disease the world over where apples are grown. It comes 

 only in those seasons where we have had sudden changes from 

 wet to dry some time during the season. 



The explanation is this: Suppose you start off with a wet 

 spring. You have a certain amount of root surface developed 

 to feed a certain amount of foliage with water. If the weather 

 suddenly becomes dry, there isn't enough root surface to get 

 far enough to supply the top leaves and the fruit, and the 

 result is either the leaves or the fruit suffers from lack of 

 water. 



It is well known that when it is a fight between fruit and 

 leaves, the leaves get it. In other words, water is withdrawn 

 from the fruit to go into the leaves, and you will notice that 

 spot is always worse around the blossom end. It is around the 

 blossom end that the tips of the sap tubes have their opening 



