ANNUAL REPORT, 1934 73 



Bud Mutation. (J. K. Shaw and W. H. Thies.) The trees topworked to various 

 suspected bud sports made a satisfactory growth and should begin to bear in 

 a year or two and show to what extent the variations shown in the original tree 

 are transmitted. 



Storage of Apples Under Various Conditions. (O. C. Roberts cooperating with 

 Agricultural Engineering Department.) The two projects on storage reported 

 on last year were continued, namely: 



1. A study of the effect of humidity on the keeping quality of apples at 32° and 

 45°F. Additional data tend to support the assumption that the maintenance 

 of high humidity at the lower temperature is less important than at the higher. 



2. The storage of Mcintosh apples above 32°F. Repeated tests indicate rather 

 conclusively that if Mcintosh apples are held at 45°F. for a period of two weeks 

 after harvesting and are then subjected to decreasing temperatures until 32° 

 is reached about November 1, the apples will be superior in flavor to those held 

 at 32° continously and can be expected to keep satisfactorily until January 

 1 or a little later. 



Tests of Various Spray Materials. (O. C. Roberts cooperating with Entomology 

 and Botany Departments.) For another season tests of various spray materials 

 have been made in the college orchards to determine their efficiency and safety 

 to the trees and fruit. Results for the past season are given in the report of the 

 Entomology Department. 



Removal of Arsenic and Lead Residues from Apples. (O. C. Roberts and 

 J. K. Shaw cooperating with Entomology and Agricultural Engineering Depart- 

 ments.) Apples which had been sprayed with lead arsenate were washed three to 

 five minutes in the washer designed by Prof. Gunness, using a solution contain- 

 ing 1.3 percent HC1 at 50° to 55°F. The removal of both arsenic and lead resi- 

 dues was highly satisfactory and the fruit suffered no apparent injury because 

 of this washing process. 



Blueberry Culture. (J. S. Bailey.) The half-acre planting set for cultural 

 experiments is situated in a relatively low spot. During the winter of 1933-34 

 all of the bushes were killed practically to the snow line. The dead parts of the 

 bushes were removed in the spring of 1934. This required very heavy pruning. 

 However, the plants recovered and made an excellent growth during the summer. 



In the spring of 1934 an experiment was started in Wagner pots using a sandy 

 loam soil which had received no fertilizer for forty-five years. Treatments con- 

 sisted of varying amounts of lime, to 40 grams per pot, and varying amounts of 

 sulfur, to 40 grams per pot, both with and without peat added to the soil. 

 Plants made the best growth in the pots receiving 5 grams of sulfur. Growth was 

 increasingly poorer with increased amounts of both sulfur and lime until with the 

 higher amounts the plants died. The soil used in this experiment is known to 

 be deficient in potash. Tests of the soils in the pots revealed little or no available 

 potash where lime was applied but relatively large amounts where sulfur was 

 used. 



The propagation work was continued. A test of German peat and a 50-50 

 mixture of sand and German peat indicated the German peat to be the better 

 propagating medium. A higher percentage of rooted cuttings was obtained 

 under burlap shade alone than under burlap shade and glass sash. 



