-10- 



3. Use apples from blocks vjhich have not been heavily fertilized with 

 nitrogen. We have noted marked differences in apples from trees with varying 

 levels of nitrogen. Apples from trees with a moderate N level are noticeably 

 superior to high nitrogen fruit. 



4. Be sure to place only blemish- free fruit in CA rooms. Culls are culls 

 even after they'v been in a CA room. They just take up space. 



5. Move apples to a CA room rapidly so that no more than 24 hours elapse 

 between harvest and storage. 



6. Put the fruit in clean or new boxes, 



7. Handle fruit with extreme care in the orchard and en route to the 

 storage so that bruising and cuts are kept at a minimum. Careless picking and 

 handling plus over or under filling of boxes in the orchard can result in ex- 

 cessive bruising and stem cuts. All skin cuts represent an excellent place 

 for rot to start. 



F. W, Southwick 



I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I 



STRAWBERRY NOTES 



Red Stele of Strawberries. 



Red stele is a cool, wet weather disease. The root core, or stele, develops 

 the characteristic brick red symptoms in early spring. The first case observed 

 this spring was found on April 25 in a field of Howard plants in Falmouth. 

 Plants in this field showed red stele symptoms for the first time in the spring 

 of 1956. It was a mistake to replant this field to a red stele susceptible 

 variety. 



Shipping Strawberry Plants 



Now that polyethylene film and bags are available there is little excuse for 

 strawberry plants to arrive in poor condition, even when shipped considerable 

 distances. If the plants are properly packed in film of the right thickness and 

 not subjected to excessive heat in transit, they will arrive in good condition. 



Recently I received three lots of strawberry plants which are good examples. 

 One lot was shipped in a crate without even a paper liner. Naturally they were 

 very dry on arrival. They might have been a total loss if they had remained in 

 a hot office over a weekend. In a second lot, the plants had been dipped in 

 water before being placed in polyethylene bags. As a result, many plants had 

 either crowns or roots decayed or both. In a third lot, the plants had the 

 soil shaken off the roots before being placed in the polyethylene bags with no 

 added moisture. They arrived in excellent condition. 



Polyethylene film will let gasses such as oxygen and carbon dioxide escape, 

 but it is impervious to water or water vapor. The water that goes into the bag 



