CA Storage Development
Analyzed by Horticulturist
Editor'! Noiat Thi ?. .
. slightly condensed version
' of a talk on controlled at
mosphere storage and han
dling of pears given by El
mer Hansen, OSC horticul
turist during the recent;
Northwest Perishable Ship
pert conference h e 1 d in 1
Medford. p :-: ;f
It's difficult to tell nowhdw
far the trend will go toward
commercial use of controlled
atmosphere storage but there
was a phenomenal increase in
its use during the past two
seasons,; said Elmer Hansen,
OSC horticulturist.
"However, the purpose, lim
itations and problems must be
clearly understood so its de
velopment can proceed on a
sound practical basis consis
tent with the best interest of
the fruit industry' Hansen
said. "This is particularly true
for winter pears, since less is
known about the specific re
quirements for these fruits.
We do not have a background
of commercial experience in
working with CA storage for
pears as we do for apples.'
Five Considerations Given
s Five major considerations
should be given c a r e f u 1
thought and attention before
CA storage is ; attempted on
any scale for any particular
fruit, Hansen emphasized.
This is not an evolutionary
development destined to re
place . general storage meth
ods. It is supplemental,, too,
to refrigeration which can be
used for specific problems
After the specific problem
is found packing house oper
ators should determine wheth
er sufficient research data
could be obtained to show if
the problem can be solved
successfully by this method.
It is not a cure-all for all fruit
storage disorders.
"We do not have sufficient
basic research information
now to predict how changes
in carbon dioxide and oxygen
content will affect biochemi
cal and physiological changes
in keepability, flavor1 and tex
ture of the fruit," the. horti
culturist added.
Some changes or side ef
fects discovered so far in CA
storage are loss of flavor in
some apple varieties and in
crease in acid content This
may be desirable in some
fruits but objectionable in
others. Pears in CA storage
ripen slower but shelf life
greatly increases.
Lower Oxygen
Also, apparently pears can
be stored at lower oxygen
levels than apples. Suscepti
bility of apples and pears to
various types of disorders
vary frpm season to season
and according to variety. Re
actions in controlled atmos
phere storage should be ob
served over several seasons,
Five "years experience is re
quired before safe recommen
dations for variety can be
made.
. Economic feasibility should
be considered .also. CA stor
age, costs more to build. It
requires constant daily- check
ing and careful attention
throughout the storage per
iod. :The important question is
could the logical line of de
velopment be toward the rela
tively: smaU CA storage own
ed and Operated by individual
shippers or toward the larger
co-op, or custom storages. No
single answer seems logical,
Hansen said.
Choice of materials and
equipment is. another impor
tant factor. Success will de
pend directly on whether ceil
ings, and the floor are ade
quately sealed against leak
age so the required atmos
phere can be attained and
maintained after the room is
loaded with fruit and closed
Builders are inexperienced
generally in this construction,
Packers must make them
aware of the need to take
extra pains and precautions
to obtain a seal that will per
form. A tight seal is even
more : important , for pears
since they must be stored at
lower temperatures and have
a lower breathing activity
which determines the rate at
which excess oxygen is re
moved from the storage room
atmosphere.
Sheet Metal Recommended
Sheet metal should be used
as a liner for remodeling stor
age rooms for CA. California
and Washington packers who
have tried it have all been
successful with metal lining.
However in new construction,
especially concrete construc
tion gas - proof liners other
than metal can be used Satis
factorily. A smooth surface is
needed for application of gas
proofing material.
Pears are different from ap
ples in handling since they
must be ripened after re
moval from storage and before
they are eaten. The fruit must
be delivered to the consumer
in good, edible condition with
as much of the original quality
as possible. Pears must be re
moved from storage and mar
keted while they still can be
ripened with good quality.
Residual life which fruit must i
have after removal from stor
age so it can. ripen properly
must be considered.
A warning sign that the al
lowable storage period is end
ing 'for Bartletts is a color
change from green' to yellow,
D'Anjou pears do not show
such a marked color change
when they reach the end of
this period and suffer a loss of
e a t i n g quality. Generally,
D'Anjou pears, can , be kept
until early March at storage
temperatures of 30 degrees
without serious quality loss.
' However, the same varieties
in different pear-growing dis
tricts may vary in this way,
Generally,' past experience
has shown that D Anjou pears
marketed toward the end of
the season tend to become dry
and mealy, lack shelf life and
often scald severely. Con
ventional methods used in
good handling and storage
practices have not always
been successful in correcting
this problem, Hansen noted
And this is the type of pear
problem for which CA may
offer a practical solution.
Polyethylene Liners
By using polyethylene film
liners the atmosphere in each
box has been modified
enough to boost keepability
and eating quality, according
to early results. However,
offsetting this benefit is oc
currence of brown-core when
carbon dioxide concentration
in the sealed bag in the box
becomes too high.
"Until we have films of uni
form permeability to carbon
dioxide and until we know
more about the seasonal vari
ations in susceptibility of
fruit to carbon dioxide injury,
use of sealed film box liners
cannot be. used safely, gener
ally," the horticulturist warned.
Favorable To D'Anjous
The D'Anjou variety re
sponds very favorably to CA
storage, according to exper
ience during the last four
years. Tne late season devel
opment of dry mealy jcondi
tion has been successfully con
trolled. Fruit can be ripened
with excellent flavor and tex
ture as late as May, Hansen
reported. Shelf life has been
improved greatly, also. Scale
is not a problem where the
oxygen has been maintained
at 2 to 2.5 per cent. No flavor
loss has been suffered under
those conditions. This makes
it possible to market the var
iety over an extended season
without any appreciable loss
in original quality from the
time the fruit is harvested.
Gut disease losses
on apples
with protection that's proven
best in the Northwest-
Du Pont FERM ATE1 or ZERLATE
ferbam fungicide
ziram fungicide
Here's a dependable and economical way to upgrade . the
quality of your apples this year. Prevent diseases with Du Pont
"Fermate" ferbam fungicide or "Zerlate" ziram fungicide.
Over the years these fungicides have proven to be the most
effective and economical means of preventing fruit disease in
northwest orchards. The excellent disease protection you get
from "Fermate" or "Zerlate" will help you produce a higher
percentage of premium-quality fruit. ;
DU PONT "FERM ATE" controls more fruit diseases
than any other fungicide. On apples it prevents both scab
and rust also protects against leaf spot, Brook's spot, black
rot, apple blotch, bitter rot, sooty blotch, fly speck and blos
som end rot v
DU PONT "ZERLATE" prevents apple scab and
bull's-eye rot as well. It k preferred by growers who want to
use a light-colored fungicide. Protection with "Zerlate" also
prevents storage decay caused by anthracnose and perennial
canker. .
, On all chemicals, always follow label inslmdums and yearnings earefuUj.
mw
FERMATE ZERLATE'
KTTa THINGS FOI BOTH UVIN3
...THOUGHCHEMSTKr
ferbam
fungicide
- ziram
fungicide
MAIL TRIBUNE, Medford, Or.
r Tuesday, March 8, 1960
Annual Meets
Set By SG
Two soil conservation
districts will hold their an
nual meetings this week
and next, according to dis
trict spokesmen.
Annual meeting of the
Rogue Soil Conservation
district will be held at the
Central Point Grange hall
Thursday, March 10, at 8
p.m., according to C. W.
Jensen, chairman of the
board of supervisors.
The program will include
a report on progress of the
Talent Irrigation project
and expected impact of the
project on agriculture of the
area by Walter Hoffbuhr,
Talent irrigation district
manager, and Jack Nichols,
bureau of reclamation of
fice, Medford.
Election of two super
visors will be held, also.
The annual meeting of
the Sams Valley-Beagle Soil
conservation district is
scheduled for 8 p.m., March
21 in the Eagle Point
Grange hall, according to
E 1 w o o d Abbott, district
chairman.
Three supervisors will
be elected, 1959 progress
will be reviewed and 1960
plans for soiL water and
plant conservation will be
discussed.
Best results have been ob
tained with an atmosphere of
less than 2 per cent carbon
dioxide. A low level of car
bon dioxide is required to
prevent brown core, Hansen
said: From the standpoint of
scald control oxygen concen
trations below 3 per cent have
been most successful. A stor
age temperature of 32 degrees
has shown satisfactory results
some seasons, the horticultur
ist noted. However, when
mealy breakdown has been
serious some years best re
sults have been obtained at
30 degrees.
"We do not have adequate
information on some prob
lems involving actual han
dling practices in CA rooms,"
Hansen stated. "More exper
ience is needed commercially."
One difficulty is inspecting
the fruit for decay and condi
tion during the storage period,
Hansen pointed out. In CA
rooms boxes are loaded in so
only those near the door can
be reached. ; .
"In the final analysis, eco
nomic feasibility of CA' stor
age can be determined only
by industry and the indi
viduals concerned," the horti
culturist concluded. "Fundar
mentally, the industry must
decide how much importance
can be attributed to eating
quality and how far it is will
ing' to go in preserving this
quality for the benefit of the
consumer during handling,
storage and marketing of the
fruit."
Traces History
In tracing the history of CA
storage, Hansen remarked
that controlled atmosphere
storage has been practiced in
the New England apple grow
ing region for 20 years. Only
recently has this method been
used commercially on the Pa
cific coast, he pointed out.
"Three years ago there were
no CA storages' in our area
(Oregon). This season approxi
mately half a million boxes of
apples and 75,000 boxes of
pears are being handled in
this way in California, Wash
ington, Oregon and in British
Columbia," the horticulturist
continued.
"Gas storage" was develop
ed in New England for han
dling apples subject to tissue
injury when stored in cold
temperatures,. Hansen said.
When stored at higher temper
atures, 38-40 degrees, injury
did not occur but storage life
of the fruit was too, limited
for commercial purposes. By
combining the modified at
mosphere feature with 40 de
gree temperature, fruit could
be kept satisfactorily over a
prolonged period of. time.
"Due , to this method East
ern - grown Mcintosh apples
are strongly, competing with
Northwest Delicious apples
and possibly pears," Hansen
pointed out. CA storage has
been used also to control
Jonathan spot in the Michi
gan fruit district;
CA storage also made it
possible to . control internal
browning in ifewtown apples
in areas with cool growing
seasons such as the Watson
ville district in California.
First commercial use of CA
atmosphere storage in the
west was for Newtown apples
in California and Mcintosh ap
ples in British Columbia.
If feeder cattle have been
eating high-shrinkage feeds
like silage and: beet pulp, con
dition them for several days
before shipping by reducing
the amount of grain and rich
feeds and replacing with dry
feeds. .
mil
GHfiT
By JOI COWLEY
. Mail Tribune Farm Editor
When you bought a few cans of baby food perhaps you
looked at the wee tins and thought as we did. What a
deal! Wish I'd thought of this! And you probably thought
as we did that cull fruits and vegetables are used to make
this baby food-fruit and produce with slight defects caus
ing its discard. '
But, that's not true! Gerber Baby Foods company, for
instance, not only uses only the top grade raw materials
but hires a large staff of agricultural specialists, field men
and laboratory research men to make sure that fruits and
vegetables produced for them are top quality, and trans
ported and processed in the best, most economical way,
: We learned all this from a pamphlet sent us by George
W. Jones, principal horticulturist, Gerber Products company,
Oakland, Calif. We were writing a letter to the horticul
turist for a copy of his speech in handling Bartlett pears
in bulk bins given in Medford before the-Northwest Perish
able Shippers conference. We had long been curious about
this baby foods company, so asked for some general in
formation on the company. From Jones's speech we learned
that the company has a large farm operation to back up
its processing plants. The company processes more than
100 items and most of the processing techniques used are
trade secrets, the company horticulturist hastily assured us.
Right here the little wife snorts and remarks, "What's
baby food got to do with farming? Why don't you write
about, farming?" Little Bit, one of Mr. Gerber's leading
consumers, had just pulled half the typewriter ribbon off
the machine, giving the wife a chance to review our work.
The Gerber' agricultural people are working on at least
two developments which the local pear industry is watch
ing closely. One is controolled atmosphere storage and the
other is use of bulk pallet bins instead of the smaller lug
boxes. Bhiefly, this new type of storage is aimed at con
trolling the atmosphere or air surrounding the fruit in the
warehouse so it will keep a high peak of quality longer.
The pallet bins are equal to several of the smaller lug
boxes. Using this method, the pickers dump the fruit from
their buckets directly into the bins. The bins are designed
to cut down on fruit handling, bruising, and time in get
ting the fruit to the processor.
The company is also experimenting with mechanical
fruit and vegetable harvesting equipment. Its agricultural
research department has developed an improved strain of
Pink Banana squash. This variety has a high yield per acre
and has a high quality and good color, consistency and
flavor to make it highly suited to baby food processing.
The company is also making fertility and irrigation studies
The Gerber plants are' located in Freemont, Mich.; Oak
land, Cam.; Asheville, N. C; Niagara Falls, Ont.; and Roch
ester, N. Y. These plants naturally cover a wide variety
of. agricultural conditions.
The newest plant is at Asheville. It was put in opera
tion last fall. First packs there included applesauce, sweet
potatoes, soups and other items. Peas, green beans, spinach,
carrots, beets Irish potatoes, quah and sweet potatoes are
scheduled for processing. Fruit will include peaches, apples,
ana eventually pears and apricots.
Canada, too, has Its experiment stations. The Gerber
pamphlet mentions the horticultural experiment station and
products laboratory at Vineland near Niagara Falls. Ont,
Growers who supply Gerber s rely oh it heavily, according
to the pamphlet. This station studies varieties, pruning, soil
management, planting, fruit maturity, pest control and phases
of processing, marketing and related cultural . practices.
In this area the Amber Gem peach was developed, noted
lor its fine flavor, texture, color and consistency.
The Fremont, Mich., plant is located in the Great Lakes
area which covers a variety of soil types, has adequate
rainfall and available water. In the section under Fremont,
the pamphlet mentions that produce procurement is a year-
around operation. Growers sign contracts with the company.
As we have mentioned often, 4-H clubs and Future
Farmers of America are important to agriculture's future.
The company apparently feels so, too. The Gerber company
actively supports these youth organizations. "Many of these
youngsters have held contracts with the company and con
tinued them as they gained Ifceir own farms," according
to the company pamphlet.
The Watsonville orchardists who send their apples to
the Oakland plant were interested in extending their mar
ket season when Gerber, university and construction rep
resentatives started work on the controlled atmosphere stor
age. The company claims to have pioneered this storage
method in California.
A spinach variety raised especially for baby food comes
from the Alba and Walcott districts near the Rochester
plant. Researchers have found mineral soils can possibly
be used for spinach. New York state spinach growers nor
mally raise it in muck soils.
Another development at Rochester was- the mechanical
harvesting of all the white seeded green beans needed for
the plant. ;
This plant also processes carrots, green beans, pears,
plums, apples, sweet potatoe and Irish potatoes.
So, when you buy some cans of baby food next time
you will know of alf the' work and research which has
gone into producing and processing that baby food.
The Ford Farm Almanac suggests you start performance
testing records now, mark the young livestock so they can
be matched with-theh mothers later, remember fertilized
pasture starts first, lasts longer, last chance for soil tests,
get manure hauled, broadcast fertilizer before you plow.
Meadow Mice Study Conducted
Corvallis - Oregon's real-
life Pied Piper is doing more
than playing a tune to rid
farmers of meadow mice. He's
conducting long-term research
near Klamath Falls to pin
point years mice are expected
to do most damage, and thus
save money for Oregon agri
culture.
Edward L. Hansen, Oregon
State college biologist, is try
ing to discover as much as
possible about habits of this
pesky animal. By learning to
predict ups and downs of
meadow mouse populations,
he hopes to save farmers from
a heavy infestation like 1957
when mice cost the state's ag
riculture millions of dollars.
During peak population cy
cles, meadow mice can dam
age a great percentage of a
crop, and also may damage
range vegetation. When sur
vival conditions are ideal, the
mouse, population increases
rapidly.
In years when an increase
is expected, spring would be
the best time to start a con
trol program because of breed
ing habits of the mice, he
points put. Reducing cover
probably will reduce their
numbers, Hansen believes. ;.
- Mouse populations last year
were quite low. Dry weather
may have helped this. In some
areas, less food was available
and many, mice failed to sur
vive. .: '-:.-
In the current issue of the
OSC agricultural experiment
station's research magazine,
"Oregon's Agricultural Prog
ress," Hansen tells plans to
construct mouse-proof enclos
ures to determine effects of
population levels on breeding
activity and movement. In
years ahead,' work for predic
tion of ' population increases
will be intensified, and a sim
ple method of forecasting
sought.,'
If a method to evaluate in
tensity of conditions excellent
for reproduction survival and
dispersion of young mice can
be developed, scientists will
have other important clues to
the possibility of a damaging
plague." . ' -
Special Seeder
for
Developed
Range Lands
Corvallis - A special grass
seeder that may revolutionize
seeding on rough range lands
and cut-over forest lands has
been released by the Oregon
State college agricultural ex
periment station for commer
cial use.
Further development of the
new-type seeder so it can be
used on a wider variety of
range and forest lands was
recommended at a recent
meeting of the inter-agency
range seeding equipment com
mittee, reports Dean E. Boost
er, OSC agricultural engineer.
The committee is made up of
representatives from the bu
reau of land management,
U.S. forest service, bureau of
Indian affairs, USDA agricul
tural research service, and
other governmental agencies.
The seeder : will now be
sent to the Arcadia Equipment
Development center of the
U.S. forest service, Arcadia,
Calif., Booster said. There, it
will undergo further develop
ment so it can be used on
range and forest lands of the
11 western states.
The special grass seeder,
known as "Desert Flower IV,"
was invented by Booster using
principles developed by D.N
Hyder and F. A. Sneva, range
researchers at the Squaw
Butte-Harney branch experi
ment station near Burns. The
sturdy new machine is able to
seed in rough land covered
with brush, stubble, and rocks.
Before seeding with the new
machine, brush on land needs
to be killed by plowing or
discing, Booster said. The
wide wheels on the seeder use
its great weight to pack the
soil to make a firm seed bed,
and at the same time open
small seed furrows in the
packed soil. Seed is dropped
in the furrows, and covered
with loose soil by heavy drag
links.
In tests on Oregon range
and sagebrush lands, the spe
cial soil firming and furrow
placement of seed has given
faster sprouting, 2 to 3 times
more survival, and higher
yields after grass stands are
established than grass planted
with conventional equipment.
A one-quarter horsepower
motor can do the work of 210
men.
Seed Producers
To Meet Friday
Talent alfalfa seed pro
ducers will meet in the
Jackson county courthouse
auditorium Friday. March
11. at 8 p.m., according to
Gene Winters, county ex
tension agent. '
Wallace Rice, manager of
the Josephine Growers Co
op, will give an up to dale
report on the outlook on
- the Greece market for the
next few yean. Weed and
.insect control for the next
few years will be discussed,
also. . x .
; Progress en the program
to introduce alkali bees
into prepared beds as a
means to improve alfalfa
seed yields will be report
ed on. Winters said.
After nine years of study,
scientists at Kansas State uni
versity conclude that grain is
not necessary in the winter
ration of heifer calves if the
heifers get good quality rough
age and a protein supplement.
It's a good idea to identify
heifer calves. Dairy scien
tists point out the calves may
be identified by ear tags,
photographs or sketches
showing color markings.
Grazing on good legumes
for 20 minutes is the bast
vitamin pill for a pig.
Deputies Forced
To Shoot Prowler
Dallas. Ore. (CPD A Polk i
county sheriff's dapvtr
finally had to shoot a prowl i
er Sunday at the post office "
here after firemen, police
and even civil defense ?
workers failed to scare the
culprit off.
The intruder was spotted
outside the post office and
authorities feared he was ,
attempting to get in. After
a fruitless chase around the .
building. Deputy Virgil -Taylor
dispatched the un-'
wanted visitor.
It was a skunk.
House Passes Bill j
Naming McKay Dam
Washington-dJPD-The House
has passed a bill designating
Detroit dam on the North San
tiam river as Douglas McKay
dam in honor of the late Ore
gon governor and secretary
of interior.
Detroit, or McKay, is one of
the army engineer dams in
the Willamette basin project.
McKay, as secretary of inter
ior, was present at its dedica
tion. Sen. Richard L. Neuberger
(D-Ore.) proposed last year
that the name of Green Peter
dam on the middle fork of the
Santiam be changed to , Mc
Kay. A change was made later
to apply the name to Detroit
dam.
r
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Acid soil can rob you of fruit tree profits
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Even with heavy applications of am
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1, 2., Because of low calcium, acid soil is
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Feeder roots may become water-logged
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3. Excess acidity. can cause the forma
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Viking. Ship Calcium Nitrate can help
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The ' fast-acting nitrate nitrogen in
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Viking Ship also provides 20 water
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And Viking Ship is easy to apply. It
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