84 FUNDAMENTALS OF FRUIT PRODUCTION 



Related to the splitting of the skin and fleshy tissues of many fruits 

 and the splitting of the stones of drupaceous fruits is the cracking of 

 carpels and seed coats frequently found in apples and occasionally in 

 pears and other pomaceous fruits. This is often accompanied by the 

 development of a whitish mold-like growth along the edges of the cracks, 

 giving rise to a condition spoken of as "tufted" carpels or "tufted" 

 seeds. According to Sorauer^^^ this condition is due to an excessive 

 moisture supply and the consequent disproportionate growth of certain 

 cells and tissues. The "tufting" itself is hardly to be regarded as a 

 diseased condition, for it is more or less common in certain varieties, but 

 apparently an excess of moisture greatly accentuates the condition. It 

 in no way injures the quality or value of the apple, except as it provides 

 a favorable place for the work of certain fungi which may gain entrance 

 to the seed cavity through a broken calyx tube. 



CEdema. — Q^^dema may be described as a swelling of certain parts 

 of a plant caused by a great enlargement of the component cells. In 

 extreme cases the cell walls break and the cells collapse, resulting in the 

 death of the affected tissues. This condition is due frequently to an 

 excess of moisture. It is favored in the case of the tomato by insufficient 

 light, too much soil moisture or a soil temperature too high in comparison 

 with the air temperature so that transpiration cannot take care of water 

 absorption.^ Sorauer^^^ states that in fruit trees these swellings are 

 usually covered by cork but that sometimes they break open. He notes 

 that the trouble is fairly common when either currants or gooseberries 

 are grafted upon the Golden Currant (Ribes aureum). The swellings 

 develop just below the union and the cion does not make a satisfactory 

 growth. In this case the excess of water is to be regarded as a local 

 rather than a general condition. 



A similar disorder in which the bark develops at the expense of the 

 wood, has been described in the pear, under the name "parenchyma- 

 tosis."^^* The swellings may be on one side only of the limb or trunk or 

 they may extend around it, giving rise to a barrel shaped or cylindrical 

 enlargement, which may be accompanied by a splitting of the bark. 



Thei'e has been described a disorder of the grape also, more or less 

 closely related to oedema, due to excessive atmospheric humidity. It is 

 most frequently found in grapes grown under glass. On the leaves and 

 peduncles intumescences develop which are characterized by great 

 turgidity, a high oxalic acid and low starch content. ^^"^ 



Fasciation and Phyllody. — Fasciation, or the production of a flat 

 branch which resembles several branches grown together is regarded 

 generally as a malformation belonging in the field of teratology rather 

 than as a pathological or diseased condition induced by agencies more or 

 less under control. Sorauer,^!'' however, places it among the distur- 

 bances due to overfeeding and associated with excessive water supply. 



