NEw YorRK AGRICULTURAL EXPERIMENT STATION. 417 
show what localities are best favored with weather suitable for 
fruit-setting. It is thought best to add such facts in the discussion, 
gleaned from whatever source, as would be helpful to the fruit 
grower in combatting unfavorable weather. 
KILLING FROSTS AND FRUIT-SETTING. 
Late frosts ruined the fruit crop in western New York in 1889, 
£890, 1895 and 1902. 
The fruit crops of 1884, 1888, 1891, 1893 and 1903 were seriously 
damaged by killing frosts. 
. Besides the above years, pears; peaches and plums were more 
or less injured by frosts in 1892, 1896 and 1900. 
Thus, considerable damage was done to fruits at blossoming- 
time by frosts in thirteen years out of the twenty-five under 
consideration. — : 
Years with killing frosts occurred in series; from 1881 to 1888 
there were no killing frosts; damaging frosts occurred in six years 
in succession, 1888 to 1893; in the succeeding years the frosts were 
somewhat more evenly distributed. | 
It can be seen from this summary that the average date at 
which the last killing frost is likely to occur in any locality is 
a matter of great importance to the fruit grower. In fact, this 
date, for the average year, or as a normal event, must often de- 
termine the limit in latitude or altitude at which a fruit can be 
grown. Even in the most favored fruit regions of the State the 
records bring out the fact that killing frosts must be expected, 
occasionally, to destroy the fruit crop wholly or in part. No season 
passes but that some loss is caused by late spring frosts in some 
part of New York. | 
There is a difference in the degree of cold that will injure 
blossoms and the developing ovaries of fruit of the several species. 
Table I shows the temperatures which are liable to injure setting 
fruit. The table has been compiled from scattering information 
from all parts of the United States as well as from the reports of 
these county committees in New York. Investigation of all the 
fruits in one locality for a long period of years would probably 
change more or less the data given. It will never be possible to 
fix definite temperatures at which setting fruits are injured, for 
several conditions change them; as, humidity of the air, cloudiness, 
diffuseness of sunlight, atmospheric pressure and possibly in- 
dividuality of the plant. There are known to be, too, slight differ- 
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