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About La Grande evening observer. (La Grande, Or.) 1904-1959 | View Entire Issue (June 3, 1910)
nzcnou hpagzz 9 to 12. 1 1 I VOL. XI LA GRANDE, UNION COUNTY, OREGON. FRIDAY, JUNE 3, 1910 NUMBER 183 7V m i -j ( - nnnnirnTiPin innnrnn - jr-i if i i - i - i m it i i ' Pear blight is one of the evils which Grande Ronde valley will have, to fight against with more or less vim as the orchards increase and the pest spreads. One of the beat artl- cles that has been, complied In this re lation Is one written by the depart ment of plant pathology and entomol ogy at 0. A. C. It follows: - What Is Fire Blight. ; Fire blight Is the most eerlous of all the diseases which' attack the pear : and apple. It is a contagious disease : of bacterial origin which, under prop . er conditions, may attack any part of . the tree. Besides the pear and apple, '3H th flnlnna. wild crab-aDole. . haw thorns, mountain ash, , serviceberry I and some other pomaceous trees are : -subject to- attacks of this disease. ,. Caase of Disease. Fire blight Is caused by a minute or ganism belonging to the group, of bac : terla and known technically as Bacil lus amylovorua. It Is a rod-shaped, j motile germ which divides very rapid iy by simple fission and is found in ;:; immense numbeis In the diseased tls ' sue. The germs are so minute that ; they measure only about 1-25000 of an inch In length and are visible only i under the highest magnification of . the compound microscope. Proefs of the Bacterial Nature of the Disease. Myriads of germs are present In all ; freshly blighted portions of the tree ;; and. In the sticky ooze from exuding i ; cankers. Pure cultures of the organ t; -4 ism may bo obtained from diseased tis sue and cultivated for generation af ter generation on suitable culture "me- I I it x S : y v S if s Call and FMfM I 41a. ."Healthy tissue Inoculated with frms from such a pure culture will become characteristically diseased The germs are found In abundance1 In the tissues so Inoculated and when grown in pure culture and compared with germs from naturally infected tissue, and with those used to produce the artificial Infection, are found to be identical. i Part of the' Tree Affected, j . The germs live almost entirely in the sappy portlon of the bark, though in some vigorous-growing varieties of pears the germs have been known to invade the sap wood to a limited ex tent When inoculated Into the grow In tins of "branches, into the blos som or the fruit,' the germs are found generally throughout the tissues. Distribution. ' Fire blight occurs In more or less severity In nearly ' all parts of the United Statea where pears and apples are grown. It was first reported in the Hudson River valley, N. T., about 1792 and was doubtless Indigenous in, the eastern; United States. '' In Oregon Fire Blight has appeared in two general localities one In -the southwestern- part of the state; in cluding the Rogue River, valley, the other In the . northeastern, part ; The former region, has doubtless become infested by the spread of the disease north from California, while the east- . era part of the state has been infect- ed through Idaho or Washington along the northern route.' life Cycle of the Blight Organism. Beginning- to the spring" the first apparent damage produced by ;the disease Jn an Infected orchard Is the Upon retiring from the Observer, which I founded 11 years ago, many friends asked me "Where are you go ing to move to!" and not a few were surprised when I told them I entertained no thought whatever of leaving grand old Union County. This was natural for the general rule has been for those selling out to move away. , For several years I have been impressed with, the pos sibilities of a rapid growth of this city and county and that I would engage in the real estate business. The opportu nity came and if you think I can be of any service to you in either selling or buying I will be pleased to do so. Ust your properly with me ' or if you have a business to dispose of, call and let us talk it over. . ':''.':'. -O. ;:;',? are Qpp ortunities Number !. ; A well improved farm of 160 acres adjoining the city 'units, containing a commerciarorchard, two barns, house with furnace, hot and cold water, nice lawn, cellar with let me explain to 108 Elm Street, two doors north of City: Recorder's Office. Phone 0HGWD5 blighting of the blossoms. Infection Is brought about by insects, principal ly bees, which have visited a case of hold-over blight and become covered with the organisms contained in the sticky exudation, inoculating the flowers In their search, for nectar. The organisms divide and multiply in the nectar and are able to enter the living tissues through the unprotected nectaries. Having entered the tis sues they quickly -blight the blossoms, pass down the blossom-stem and In to the fruit spur, killing the tissues and cutting off the leaves from water supply causing them to shrivel and dry, thus producting "fruit ' spui blight" The latter occurs several weeks ' after blossom infection. ' In 1 very serious cases nearly all the fruit spurs may be blighted in this way and the trees set no fruit. Usually the germs die out and do not growj into the twig or branch on which the spur occurs but occasionally the germs may continue into the bark of the branch at the base of, the "fruit spur and form a typical canker. Fruit purs on the larger branches are a fruitful source of body Infection and many cases of blight canker originate in this way. y Appearance of the Disease. The name "Fire Blight" is given to this disease because of the character istic appearance of pear foliage on twigs or branches which have been killed by the blight organisms. The leaves turn black as though scorched by fire and frequently remain on. the tree during the following winter. It should' be noted th&t ; this color, of the', foliage vU characteristic of .the 3rou my Exceptional H 2i ilo pear when It has been killed during the growing season. , If a grower not familiar with the pear blight desires to know how the "twig blight" looks let him girdle a twig In mid-summer and watch the results. The foliage of the fruit spurs, killed by the blight has much the same appsr.rance as that of the twigs. On the apple the foliage of twig and fruit spur blight turns brown and drr. . The cankers are also quite charac teristic but are very variable in ap pearance, dependent oa the age of thebranch attacked and upon the con dition of the tree. The disease pro gresses most rapidly in the fleshy outer layer cf the bark and at first produces a watery appearance in tha affected area.- Later the tissues of the bark are more or less broken down and the cankers become dark in color and slightly sunken and are filled with a gummy substance which In. active cankers exudes. This exudate Is at first sticky and contains myriads of which visit, .such cankers in great! abundance and become covered with the organisms. If after becoming in fected in this way they visit the bios-, soms for nectar they Inoculate the blossom with the germs 'which find an easy access to the tissues of the blossom through the nectaries. Besides the blight cankers found cn the limbs and trunks one frequent ly finds in some varieties of pears and Spltzenberg apples a large canker at the surface of the ground extending up on the trunk for some distance and down, the large roots.' This con dition is called "collar rot," and may result from a blight canker appear ing on the trunk and running down in to the collar, or may result from in fection taking place off at or near the surface 6f, the ground.' Wounds made by borers or gnawing animals may furnish the' point of infection. - ' root rot Snay be" caused - by the cold running spring, free -from -winter storms, several' large springs, beautiful view of the valley,. Land abutt , iLg on three sides is held for twice the amount asked for this property. THIS IS A BARGAIN 160 acres for $8,000, or the place can be divided nicely, 80 without im provements for. $3,000, all excellent fruit land. It will only take a few moments to show you this place and, it will speak for itself. One of the best known restaurants in Union County for sale at less than invoice price. Reasonable rent. An opportunity , to step into a well established business, that seldom presents itself. Call and learn particulars. 240 acres in Lower Cove, mountain land, 150 of which -4 can be cultivated, Easy of access and in a very few years will be worth many times the price now asked, $7 per acre. Other Properties 320 acres of land east of Imbler; some .timber and most of it good soil. $10.00 per acre. A large farm for sale near Ladd Creek. . -: , A. fine farm,near Union. - , , A nice home In South La Grande. ' " ' ' v I believe organisms gaining entrance to the bark or roots through infection in the tips of wate sprouts which come off some distance from the tree. This condition is common in some varieties of pears. '':''. A pear tree hen badly cankered Is easily recognized at a distance in the early autumn by the general red dish cast to the foliage. When the foliage of only a part of the tree is 10 MARKmNG ; La Grande People while spending the day in Union can keep in touch with business with the Bell Tele phone System. It reaches every where, . ' ' Pacffc Telephone and Telegraph Co. i tmy Bell Telephone h the Centre - of the System. V. 9 reddish it Indicates that a large can-, ker has wholly or partly girdled one, of the large branches. If the foliage . of the whole tree is equally affected , we should look for a canker at the collar or roots. It should be men tioned, however, that any disorder of the root system, whether due to pear blight or some fungus or physiologi-' 'Contolnued on Page 10.) p. it will meet Main 744 K P.