/ 



among the later varieties, are "beiov; par" this season. 'Northern 



Spy, Baldv/in, and more rarely Mcintosh and Cortland have come in 



lor criticism. In general, those J'.iclntosh that v.'ere allowed to 



hang on longer than the average, developed the highest quality. 



There are many factors, of course, which influence 

 quality development in the apple as v/ell as in other fruits. 

 Temperature is one factor. It is known tlu;t varieties differ 

 in the amount of heat required during the summer months for 

 optimum development. Duchess and Yellov/ Transparent, for example, 

 develop at lower temperatures than Northern Spy and Baldv/in. 

 Stayman and Winesap demand even more heci.t during the growing 

 season. A heat deficienc:/" in any case may result in quality 

 deficiency. 



It is interesting to note that there was a heat de- 

 ficiency of almost two degrees in Massachusetts during the period, 

 March through September. A difference of tv;o degrees, although 

 rather small, may be very significant. For instance, the normal 

 temperature for this period in Burlington, Vermont, is 56. 1° F. 

 or just 1.60 F. lower than at Amlierst. As far south as Trenton, 

 Nevv' Jersey, the temperatures during the same period average only 

 about 4 degrees above ours. 



Of perhaps more importance are heat deficiencies in 

 August and September v/hen apples tend to complete their maturity. 

 In 194.0, the Amherst mean temperatures for August and September 

 averaged I.70 F. and 1.6° F., respectively, belov; normal. It 

 is possible that the loiver temperatures inhibit jQ maximum de- 

 velopment of quality in some of our Massachusetts vt^rieties. 

 It is well recognized that low temperatures during the final 

 stages in the grov/th of peaches often result in delayed maturity 

 and poor quality. 



Another weather peculiarity of the 1940 season which 

 may have affected seme orchards adversely was the low rainfall 

 in August and September - five inches below normal. 



La\7rence Southv/ick 



Here's an Idea 



At a recent Jlashoba meeting, A. B. Burrell of Cornell 

 University discussed a J^-yeav spraying experiment in which the 

 yield of young Mcintosh ti'T^es is being studied in relation to 

 the scab control program. The first Block has received Lime 

 Sulfur throughout the season for the past 4 years. The second 

 Block has been sprayed \./ith Flotation Sulfur throughout. Block 

 3 has received Lime Sulfur before bloom and Flotation Sulfur 

 thereafter, while in Block 4 this order was reversed. The aver- 

 age yields per tree imder the four treatments for the entire 

 period, 1937-1940 w«re as follows: Block 1 (L.S. only), 9 bu.. 

 Block 2 (Flot. S. only), 13.4 bu.. Block 3 (L.S. fol. by Flot. 

 S.), 13.2 bu.. Block 4 (Flot. E. fol. by L.S.), 11.2 bu. A dis- 

 tinct biennial tendency was noted in tb.e trees sprcryed with L. S. 



