-2- 



but it appears that a quarter to a half of the apple trees in that area were 

 put out of business for a time at least. Peach orchards and other stone 

 fruits were severely injured. V.Tien v/e add to this the nev.s that tractors 

 are doing a big business in pulling apple orchards in Washington, and the 

 more or less extensive pulling of uneconomic orchards all ov^r the dour.try, 

 it appears that the national apple crop will fall to the level of domestic 

 consumption. J. K. Shaw 



Phosphorus and Potash Under a Mulch 



Vforkers at the Kentucky Agricultural Experiment Station find that 

 omission of phosphorus from nutrient solution cultures seriously affect apple 

 and peach root development, especially fibrous roots. The trees grown with- 

 out phosphorus vrere much smaller than those receiving phosphorus. This 

 element is, of course, necessary for all plant growth although there is 

 little evidence to show that fruit trees in 'Massachusetts are suffering 

 from phosphorus deficiency. An application of phosphorus in a sod orchard 

 may never get into the trees because it is soon fixed in unavailable form 

 near the surface of the soil. The use of mulch brings feeding roots of the 

 tree to the surface where thej' have a better chance to absorb not only phos- 

 phorus but potash. It is thought that the presence of decaying organic 

 matter in the soil tends to keep phosphorus and potash in an available fcrm. 

 Feeding roots in the zone of decaying nrganic matter have a chance to ahjorj 

 these mineral elements before they become fixed. Trees which develop a mat 

 of fibrous roots under a mulch v:ill also develop deep roots if subsoil con- 

 ditions are favorable. J. K. Shaw 



Fu rther Observations on Modifie d Atmosphere Storage 



V.'e have opened the modified atmosphere storage room in our cold 

 storage. The room was sealed October 11, 1940 and the oxygen content dropped 

 from the normal 21;'^ to about 13^ within a short time. It continued at about 

 that level for several weeks indicating that the room was not sufficiently 

 gas tight. The room was opened on February 24, and further precautions v;ere 

 taken to make it gas tight, including an improvement of the door seal. Fol- 

 lowing this the oxygen content gradually fell to around lO^o where it con- 

 tinued with small fluctuations. This behavior indicated that leakage was 

 decreased but that the room was still not tight enough for respiration to 

 bring the oxygen dovm to the desired 2ja. On examining the empty room we 

 found one place that gave opportunity for some leakage. This may help to 

 explain the failure to obtain the desired composition of the atmosphere. The 

 apples are now being examined for condition and quality. They seem to be in 

 good condition and of a quality equal to or better than others stored in nor- 

 mal air at 32° even though these apples were stored at 40°. Our experience 

 this year has been somev;hat disappointing, but we feel that the difficulties 

 encountered can be overcome and that modified atmosphere storage does have 

 distinct possibilities. Great pains must be taken to see that there is the 

 least possible leakage, that the room is filled to capacity and that air cir- 

 culation is sufficient to assure apple temperatures uniformly close to 40°. 



J. K. Shaw 



Shall y.'e Plant a I^ew Orchard? 



There seems to be a surplus of nursery apple trees thic sprLn,-, 

 and prices are low. 7.1^116 this is no time for extensive and indiscriminate 

 planting, it is clear that unless more orchards are set, apple production in 



