EXPERIMENTS WITH A VIEW TO CONTROLLING THE DISEASE. 



101 



D.— CULTIVATION TESTS. 



The effects of various modes of cultivation are being tested with apples. Different blocks 

 of similar land are reserved at the Government Experiment Orchard, South Australia, for this 

 purpose. In No. 1 block the land is sub-soiled, ploughed once, and summer tilled ; in No. 2, 

 sub-soiled, ploughed twice, and summer tilled; and in No. 3 not sub-soiled, ploughed twice, and 

 summer tilled. The temperature of the soil will vary under different methods of treatment, and 

 the development of "Bitter Pit may, in this way, be influenced. 



E. — IRRIGATION EXPERIMENTS. 



1J. Ax Mr. Jas. Cowan's Orchard, Bacchus Marsh, Victoria. 



The soil in this orchard is alluvial, composed of the washings from volcanic and slaty country. 

 It is 26 feet in depth, and naturally drained. 



A row of Sturmer Pippins, consisting of fourteen trees about twelve years old, were 

 kindly placed at my disposal for experiment to test the effect of watering on the development of 

 Bitter Pit. The first watering was given to all the trees early in December, 1911, and a second earlv 

 in February, with the exception of three trees. The fruit was picked on 24th April, and there was 

 no noticeable difference in the yield between those watered only once and those watered twice. 

 There were about 110 bushel cases, or 5,600 lbs. of fruit on all the trees, but there was a distinct 

 difference in the amount of Bitter Pit. In the trees watered twice, there was 3 per cent, of Bitter 

 Pit, while in those watered once there was 8 per cent. 



The rainfall was as follows in 1911 and 1912 : — 





1911. 





1912. 





Inches. 





Inches. 



January 



1-01 



January 



0-21 



February 



3-63 



February . . 



2-11 



March 



7-63 



March 



1-02 



April 



0-58 



April 



1-01 



May 



1-92 



May 



0-47 



June 



2-37 







July 



1-03 







August 



0-73 







September . . 



4-63 







October 



1-72 







November . . 



0-34 







December . . 



3-64 







Total 



.. 29-23 







Next season half of the trees in the row will be fully watered, and the other half sparingly 

 watered, and a comparison made between the amount of Bitter Pit in each case. 



V. -COLD STORAGE EXPERIMENTS. 



It is hardly necessary to dwell upon the advantages of cold storage as far as the carriage of 

 fruit is concerned, but it is with reference to the development of Bitter Pit in transit that these 

 experiments have been undertaken, in conjunction with Mr. \V. C. Flench, Engineer-in-Charge. 

 As far back as 1873 the Royal Horticultural Society of Victoria took a practical interest in the 

 forwarding of fruit to Europe, and of the fruits which had been carefully packed and forwarded to 



