-■■ISIOH SERVICr; PUIJS PROGRAi,.S FOR M317 FI.I RURAL RADIO ITETVfORK 



^mnouncement has been made that the Extension Service, University oi 

 ■u.So^chu setts, vrill participate v:ithin the next few months on programs of xne 

 Rural Radio Netxvork, a new FM service beaaned exclusively to faiTn families. This 

 announcement comes from V/illard A. Munson, director of the Extension Service. 

 "Extension work v/ith the iletv/orlc must naturally be light at first," he states, 

 until FH radio enters more rural homes." 



Extension specialists and county agents, in addition to resident and 

 Experiment Station staff members and specialists from other ::oveniinent agencies, 

 met recently on the campus v/ith officials of the Rural Network. The delegates 

 expressed interest in the nevir FL! Network and agreed to cooperate. Flans are nn\; 

 undenvay for participation. 



Director llunson reports the Netv/ork v;ill carry detailed analyses of 

 immediate market reports, weather reports for farmers, agricultural news, talks o.r. 

 farm practices and home management, as vrell as broadcasts from other agricultural l 

 schools ajid colleges — in addition to federal, state, and private agencies. 



The Rural Radio Network may be heard on Y-'ACE-FU, channel 100.3, from 6 in 

 the morning until 9 at night. The ITACE-FM channel reaches Central and Western 

 liassachunetts, as vrell as many parts of Connecticut, New Hajnpshire, and Venaont, 

 providing a static free radio signal. 



The Network has been in operation for the past seven mnnbhs in New York 

 ■itate, r.ervlng the entire milk shed region plus New York City proper v/ith top 

 flight farra information and entertainment, 



George Vanliorn 



gECENT_ REPORTS ON FRUIT DISEASES AND THEIR CONTROL 



Effect of Nitrog_en Fertili_zer_ on the Control of Scab in L IcIntosh app les. 

 In a number of cropV, tliVnuVritiou xevel of"pl8jits has been shorm to have a 

 direct bearing on susceptibility to certain diseases. Especially is this true 

 when the level of nitrogen and/or potash is involved. It is coinmon observation 

 that scab is difficult to control in apple trees grov/ing in a poultry yard. 

 Rapid, tender, succulent grovrth encouraged by excessive nitrogen seems to be 

 at least one factor favoring copious scab development, D, II, Palmiter reported 

 (l.',F.G,A. meetings in Worcester, January 4, 1949) on a scab spray tost in an 

 orchard in the Hudson Valley where a number of Mcintosh trees received the same 

 sulfur spray program in each of 6 successive seasons. Some of the trees v;ore 

 not fertilized, some received nitrogen as usual in a spring application to the 

 soil, v/hile a third set received thoir nitrogen in the form of urea added to the 

 spray tank in 2 or 3 early season spray applications to the trees. In the 

 unfertilized trees the yield (average for 6 years) was only moderate, scab countti 

 on harvested fruits low, percent of drops low and fruit color very good. For 

 the trees that received Uramon in the soil, yield v/as much higher, but so was 

 scab and the per cent of pre-harvest drops, and tlie fruit color was poor. For 

 the trees that received nitrogen as Uramon or NuGreen in the spray, the a\^rage 

 total yield per tree was nearly as high as for the ground applications, but scaV 

 was no higher than in the unfertilized trees, pre-harvest drop v;as intermediate 

 between. the checks and ground applications of nitrogen, and fruit color was 



