TUESDAY. DECEMBER 13. 19B0
MEDFORD MAIL TRIBUNE. MEDFORD, ORE.
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GRAND CHAMPION-Michael Clark, of the Oak Grove dis
trict, Medford, showed his 1,535 pound Angus bull in the
Midco Purebred association show and sale Dec. 7 in The
Dalles and took the grand championship lor the Aligns
breed. Clark is a 1954 graduate of the Crater high school
FFA and vocational agriculture classes. "
Young Breeder Gets
Championship
A young part-time farmer
from Madrona lane, Medford
came home with the grand
championship for Angus after
entering his Angus bull in
the Midco Purebred associa
tion show early this month.
Michael Clark, an employee
In the engineering department
Short Course Set
For Seed Growers
On Jan. 19-20
Corvallis-Oregon's $30 mil
lion seed industry, shooting
for increased foreign; sales,
hopes to squeeze more effi
ciency from its already
highly developed seed process
ing plants.
A seed processors short
course at Oregon Stale col
lege, Jan. 19 and 20, will pre
sent new research on seed
cleaning and discussions of
warehouse management, mar
kcting regulations, and other
operations affecting Oregon's
competitive position in domes
tic and foreign trade. ,
Local seed growers meeting
recently at Portland tabbed
Africa, the Far East, and Lat
in American countries as out
lets for increased Oregon seed
sales, but noted that both
Canada and Europe were
streamlining their seed indus
tries in a bid for these mar
kets. , Jesse E, Harmond, OSC ag
ricultural engineer and chair
man of the short course, said
the two-day course includes
morning lecture sessions and
afternoon demonstrations on
seed processing, plus a school
on seed identification by the
OSC official seedtcstlng lab
oratory. New Methodi Liittd
New methods of separating
different kindj of seeds in
volve principles of electron'
ics, magnetic response, elec
trical vibration, dimensional
differences in seed, and pneu
matic process. Other topics
are use of multi-wall bags for
seed handling, maintenance of
air-screen machines for clean
ing seed, and fluorescent tests
for seed viability.
. Also scheduled for discus
sions are U.S. department of
agriculture seed laws and reg
ulations, and management and
bookkeeping records for small
seed cleaning plants.
Seed certification, seed
borne diseases, and control of
insects, rodents and other haz
ards in seed cleaning plants
are among topics slated for
the course.
Harmond urges all persons
interested in any phase of
the seed Industry to enroll
Housing reservations should
be made with J. Ritchie Cow
an, farm crops department
Oregon State College, Corval
lis.
of the Camp White Veterans
Administration domiciliary,
hopes to do as well in the
Klamath Falls, Oregon Angus
association sale scheduled for
March. However, he already
has some championship ro
settcs hanging on Ills wall
These include the reserve
grand championship ul the
Josephine county fair and the
reserve Junior championship
in the Oregon Slate Angus
sale last year.
Young Clark was graduated
from Crater high school in
Central Point in 1054. He got
his start with Angus under
the FFA and vocational agri
culture program then. He has
been a part-time farmer and
full-time employee in the
Camp White domiciliary en
gineering department since
his four years in the Air
Force.
Aiming at Breeding
Clark is aiming at a breed
ing business and while not
working at the domiciliary is
trying to raise bulls and sell
them. His father, Lewis Clark,
has a 100-acre dairy farm
where the young breeder lives
and keeps his stock. His herd
includes Tl head of cows and
calves, built up since lie start
ed raising steers in 1948.
Clark's advice to olher
young farmers starting out is
to buy only good stock, keep
the best bulls and take good
care of them.
"I like Angus since tins
breed is naturally polled (no
horns), have very little calv
ing trouble - have smaller
calves and due to their black
color don't get pinkeye," the
young breeder said. "I never
had any trouble getting loans.
My full-time job helps. 1 also
keep detailed records.
Clark observed thill popu
larity of Angus in the valley
is growing. 'I en years ago
there were hardly any Angus
herds and now there are
number of them, he noted.
CHIT CHAT--
By JOE COWLEY
Mail Tribune 'rm Editor
The AWOC IS coming into Medford next year to organ
ize the pickers. And when it does, it probably will be tied
in with the Teamsters union.
This we learned after talking over the problem with a
nninn snnrrp. We Quoted an article published in the Ore-
gonian earlier last week and received only an amused smile
from a union member as an answer. A newly organized
union group must have a certain minimum membership to
qualify for a union charter. After that it's not likely that
the AWOC will disintegrate as the Portland newspaper claims
it is. According to our sources, "practically all of the pickers
in California" are organized.
We saw the little green cards with AWOC stamped on
the outside. Dues are $2 a month and can be paid when the
Dicker is able to, we were told by a shop steward. The
nickers apparently feel that the union is their only salvation
If the teamsters join forces with the AWOC the pickers will
have a mighty strong bargaining weapon. If and when that
happens, then we'll again see Richard Carney, Portland attor
ney who has been so ably defending O. H. Bengtson, Med
ford Attorney. Carney handles the legal work for the Team
sters.
The people we talked to also saw "Harvest of Shame
on television. They feel, as we do, that the Ed Morrow
film showed conditions much worse than those on the Pacific
Coast. Conditions here aren't that bad, but could stand con
siderable improvement.
We visited with some pickers who stopped in one of the
local trailer camps while en route to another harvest area.
They had been delayed, but were looking forward to pick
ing orange in California. The trailer we sat in was so spot
less that you could have eaten off the floor. The two fam
ilics we interviewed were dressed inexpensively, but cleanly
and neatly. If you saw them in town, you would probably
figure they were people from small ranches here. They em
phasized repeatedly they pick because tthey would rather
do that than anything else. In fact, one of the husbands
was working temporarily in a lumber mill and didn't like it.
Old Water
Meets
Group
Tonight
' A meeting will be held
at 8 o'clock tonight in the
Sami Valley Grange hall
to reactivate the old Sami
Valley-Beagle Water De
velopment association, ac
cording to County Commis
sioner Ralph Jamei.
"We feel that reactiva
tion of thii group will give
us more of a voice at the
plans for the Rogue River
basin project come closer
to completion," James said.
The group was active in
1950. Ben Day, Medford
attorney, is president, and
Ralph James, tecretary-traasurer.
What kind of life do they lead? Talking to these two
families we got the picture of open highways, picking fruit
under sunny skies while children played near the trees, and
a group of friendly migratory workers always willing to
help one another in a pinch. Their two main complaints
were poor living quarters and unfair picking foremen.
Our two families, typical of Pacific Coast pickers, follow
a regular circuit. They pick citrus fruit in California all
winter, which allows their children to stay in the California
schools through the school year. Then, late in May, they
start thinning peaches in California, around Modesto, Marys
vill and Yuba City, then pick them. Next they move into
the cherries around Stockton, move to Oregon's Junction
City, Salem and may go as far as The Dalles for cherries.
During this period, some may pick beans in eastern Oregon
and Washington. They come down to Medford to pick pears.
After the pear harvest they shift to olives in northern Cali
fornia, then to oranges and other citrus fruit.
"We would stay longer in Medford if we had belter liv
ing quarters and working conditions," one of the women
pickers told us. "When you figure it costs $30 to $50 to move
from one area to another it pays to stay in one spot as long
as you can.
These people complained of paying $35 a month for cabins
with warped floors, Infested with bugs and having only an
outside toilet. This doesn't include heat and electricity.
They weren't complaining of wages as much as the unreas
onableness of some ranch foremen. Some get trees loaded
with fruit and others get "thin" trees. It all depends on
how you stand with the crew foreman, regardless of how
efficient you are at picking or how many years you have
been returning to a particular orchard. An average pear
picker can make from $8 to $15 a day or $90 a week, they
told us. They figure they can make $15 to $25 a day in
cherries, and some, $30 to $50 a day.
'Pear Decline' in Vaiiey Takes
250 Acres of Trees, Cordy Says
These pickers complain of being forced to use Canadian
buckets, which are bigger than U.S. buckets, for picking fruit
in other areas. They tell of pickers quartered in bunkhouses
without heat or blankets, forced to eat green beans all mixed
in with scrambled eggs, of room rents and groceries suddenly
going up in price as the pickers move into an area. These
people feel they are doing an honest day's work and should
be treated as well as anybody else working for wages. One
of the husbands is a trained flight-line electrician from large
aircraft plants, but prefers the freedom of a picker's life.
WFA Meeting
To Highlight
I960 Progress
Highlights and plans for the
i960 oper.-Uions of the West
ern Furniers association will
be reviewed during the dis
trict director nomination
meeting set for Jan. 5, 1901 In
Salem, according to Jack llan
klns, Medford branch man
ager. One of the directors will
be nominated to represent the
Rogue Valley urea which the
Medford office covers, accord
ing to llunkins. The Rogue
Valley representative will
serve on WFA's policy-making
board for three years. A di
rector will be elected by in
dividual voling of members,
Hankins expluined.
The meeting will start
promptly Ht 1 1 a.m. with a
free luncheon lo ull members
and director candidates.
"The Challenges and Op
portunities of WFA in the
Sixties" will be the key ud
dress by Hurry J. Beernink,
general manager at Scuttle,
Wash. This will feature lust
minute details on WFA ac
complishments of 1900 plus
project plans and progrnms
for the years ahead, lie will
also tell of the operating mar
gins earned.
Kenneth F. Lundberg. WFA
operations director, will speak
on "Looking Forward with
WFA Farm to Market Serv
ices," a pictorial presentation.
Tickets may be obtained
from WFA branches or from
truck operators in Jackson
and Josephine counties, llun
kins said.
Oin- two pear grower friends can say "we told you so."
Suggestions for Improved picker conditions made by these
two families interviewed correspond exactly with their's.
These are: establish a large, central migratory labor camp
and set picking rules according to tree harvest conditions.
Tlie.se people propose an area which would include attractive
parking sites for houselrailers or family type houses, plus
an attractive but practical burrocks for single men. They
would set picking scales according to whether each orchard
has good or poor crops and how easily trees are picked.
Such a picking scale should be worked out with a represen
tative of the pickers and the grower, they suggest. Such a
scale should be based on whnt an average picker can make
and what the best picker can possibly earn, they added.
Now, hang onto your hats! California farmers have pro
posed something very similar. They have set up their own
employment service as part of a four-point program. Idea
is to provide a readily available pool of domestic workers
for furniers throughout the state, according to a California
newspaper. The over-all program is designed "to improve
the lousy image the public has of the farmer," according to
John V. Newman, a Ventura citrus grower, president of the
Council of California Growers.
Olher parts of the program are: health insurance for mi
grant workers, paid in part by farmers and In part by work
ers, a drive to persuade government authorities to provide
housing for migrant families, a campaign to obtain adequate
public schooling for the children of roving field hands.
This new employment service will be run by the Call
forniu Growers Farm Labor committee which has been in
Ihe forefront of the farmers' battle against organizing efforts
of the Agricultural Workers Organizing committee of the
AFL-CIO. The farmers voted the program in after a recom
mendation by the council.
The health Insurance propositi would pay premiums for
the migrant workers, but not for his family, while he is
working for the farmer. The next farmer would take over
Ihe premiums while the migrant worker is employed by
him. When unemployed, Ihe worker pays his own premium.
Incidentally, the pickers interviewed thought the workers
should be charged rent for housing at the labor camp. They
don't want free quarters to be considered part of their wages.
Also, any picker can get a good education if he want it,
trouble is some don t. they pointed out.
One prominent packing house operator replied that
there are three or four growers who have housing and
working conditions the rail of the industry is not
proud of. However, the vast majority do their best to
provide sanitary and neat housing. Picking rates are
adjusted if tome trees, such as those on ditch banks,
are harder to pick than others, he said referring to
his own orchard. The state of Oregon has strict regu
lations on housing, sanitation facilities and on the ve
hicles which carry pickers, he added.
On the light side-"The cow Is a mobile animated machine,
housed In unprocessed leather. On one end it is equipped
with a mower, a grinder, and other standard equipment,
Including bumpers, headlights, wing flaps, and foR horn.
"At the other end is a milk dispenser and insect repcllcr..
More than 250 acres of
Rogue valley pear trees have
been destroyed by "pear de
cline" during the past two
years, and another 750 to 1,
750 acres of trees can be ex
pected to be similarly destroy
ed, according to Cliff Cordy,
county horticultural agent.
Cordy made these observa
tions at the Medford Chamber
of Commerce round table
luncheon Monday in the Jack
son hotel. He had been called
on to explain pear decline.
Cordy said pear decline has
been defined as "any malady
that attacks a pear tree for
which there was no known
or obvious cure." He noted
that this is a poor definition
because it implies "igno
rance."
Although some thing
known about the disease, Cor
dy said there is not, nor prob
ably will be, a cure for pear
decline.
Recent Years Threat
He said pear decline has
only become a threat to the
valley's pear crop in recent
years. It started several years
ago in Washington and then
slowly worked its way south,
he said, finally hitting Cali
fornia "with a whallop" last
year.
Local growers became con
cerned about the disease in
1953, he said, and poole $28,
000 and employed a Southern
Oregon college professor to
study pear decline.
Asked just how serious the
disease is, Cordy replied that
Yakima, Wash., was hit so
hard that the canneries clos
ed down. The Yakima pear
output declined from a "nor
mal" 180,000 tones a year to
last year's 25,000 ton output.
This was probably the low
point in its pear production,
he said.
Kind of Virus
Cordy said pear decline is
thought to be a kind of virus,
distributed by bugs, that at
tacks the roots of the pear
tree. Although probably all
trees now contain the virus,
only those trees with certain
kinds of roots are susceptible
to the disease and will die.
Cordy elaborated on this
and explained that each pear
tree is started from a seedling
root, some of which are im
ported from other countries.
In order to grow the local
Cornice, D'Anjou and Bartlett
trees, they are grafted onto
the seedling root from which
they then grow. If the seedling
root is susceptible to the di
sease, then the entire tree is
doomed.
Cordy said the most suscep
tible of these seedling roots
are apparently two varieties
imported from China. There
are two other Chinese vari
eties, he said, which are not
susceptible.
Certain To Die
Trees growing on these two
varieties, he said, are certain
to die. Another variety, this
one coming from France, is
apparently susceptible to the
extent of 5 to 10 per cent,
he said.
It is not known exactly how
many of the valley's pear trees
were started from any partic
ular root, and it can only be
guessed as to the exact num
ber of trees that will be af
fected by pear decline.
But, it is estimated, he said,
that there are from 500 lo 1,
000 acres of valley trees that
grow on the susceptible Ori
ental roots. Adding the 5 to
10 per cent of French root
trees, this will mean that a
total of 1,000 to 2,000 acres
of valley trees will eventual
ly be destroyed, he said.
Economic Loss
If these figures are correct,
Cordy said, it will mean a loss
to the valley economy of from
$2 million to $2t$ million.
The 250 acres that have al
ready been destroyed, he said,
represent a loss to the valley
of more than $300,000. Con
tained on these 250 acres
were approximately 17,500
trees, or Vh per cent of the
valley's total number of
trees.
Cordy noted that probably
no one valley orchard con
tains all susceptible trees. He
did say that some orchards
contain up to 23 per cent sus
ceptible Oriental root trees.
Although there is no cure
for pear decline, Cordy said
we have learned how to
evade it."
An experimental fruit tree
farm, established here in 1918
by Prosfcssor Reimers, he
suid, has proved valuable in
determining which kind of
seedling roots are resistant to
pear decline.
'Old-Home' Variety
The best of these. Cordy
said, is an "old-home" varie
ty eastern seedling which is
used as an inter-stock in the
trees. An inter-stock seedling,
he explained, is a seedling
grafted onto the original seed
ling. The final seedling, such
as the Cornice or Bartlett, is
then grafted on lo the inter
stock seedling.
It has been found, he said,
that the old-home variety inter-stock
seedling grows roots
of its own, so that when the
susceptible original root is
struck and killed by pear de
cline the tree can continue to
grow on the interstock roots
without any apparent harm
to the tree itself.
Nurseries are now being en
couraged to graft the inter
stock roots onto the original
roots, he said.
Start Planting Program
Cordy said the Rogue val
ley is fortunate to have started
a tree-planting program sev
eral years ago, using trees that
would not - be susceptible to
pear decline.
This means then, he said,
that in a few years, new trees
will be coming into produc
tion at about the same rate
as the susceptible trees are go
ing out of production. Cordy
pointed out that it will take
from 10 to 15 years for the
new trees to start paying for
themselves because of their
slow growth rate in the valley.
He noted that Rogue valley
trees grow much slower than
those in California.
"We will lose faster than
we will gain for awhile," Cor
dy said, "but fortunately, we
have a head start."
GARDENING TIPS
By JOHN McLOUGHLIN I
County Extension Agent
t It is a matter of time before!
many of our house plants such I
as Dracena, Dieffenbachia i
and rubber plant grow out of
place in the area of our homes
we had originally planned for
them. Two ways to cope with
this problem would be to buy
new plants and discard me
old ones or to propagate new
plants. I believe most home
gardeners would receive more
satisfaction trying to propa
gate new plants.
The method I would use to
propagate would be air layer
ing. The materials required
for air layering are sphagnum
moss, twine, an impervious
covering material such as
plastic and a sharp knife.
Peat moss or sawdust may be
found to be satisfactory sub
stitutes ' for the sphagnum
moss.
The air layering method Is
as follows. Ma k e a slanting
cut extending one-third into
the stem of the plant at the
desired location for root for
mation. For rubber plants
this cut would be nine to 15
inches below the growing tip,
in Dracena and Dieffenbachia
just below the lowermost leaf.
It would be advisable to make
the cut slightly below the
node.
Put in Splint
After the cut is made, place
a splint in the cut to prevent
the plant tissues from mend
ing. Hormone powder may
then be applied to the area.
Wrap this area with two
handfuls of wet sphagnum
moss. Tie the moss firmly in
place with .the twine and
then wrap the moss ball with
the plastic. The purpose of
Ashland Couple
Attend Meeting
Of Farm Bureau
Denver, Colo.-By their vote
in the recent election, farm
ers clearly rejected proposals
for increased government In
tervention and subsidy in ag
riculture, Charles B. Shuman,
president of the Apnencan
Farm Bureau Federation, told
the organization's 42nd an
nual convention Monday.
"Farmers have now clearly
demonstrated that their votes
are not for sale to the high
est bidder because they know
that government price fixing
and supply control mean low
er, not better, farm income,"
he said.
"This election should end
for all time the fiction that
farmers want more govern
ment regulation and price de
termination in their business
The policies of the Farm Bu
reau have been effectively
vindicated as accurately re
flecting the thinking of farm
people," he said.
Lose Markets
"Artificially high prices re
suit in loss of markets to sub
stitutes and synthetics regard
less of the means by which
the price is forced to an arti
ficial level.
Farmer voting in commod
ity - by - commodity referenda
on government farm pro
grams provides no assurance
of sound solutions, according
to Mr. Shuman. "Unsound
government programs do not
work any better just because
farmers vote for them.
Mr. and Mrs. Robert Lytle.
Ashland, are among the 70
Oregonians attending the an
nual convention as official del
egates. Oregon's two official
voting delegates to the AFBF
convention are Gerald Deter-
ing. president, and Wiley
Clowcrs, Madras, first vice
president. Ben Robinson. Un
ion county, served on the field
crops committee.
Centrally located is a conversion plant consisting of a com
bination storage and fermentation vat, three converters in
series and an intricate arrangement of conveyor tubes.
"Special equipment includes a device for self-reproduction
at yearly Intervals and a central pumping system. The
machine Is unpatented, available in various colors, sizes
and qualities."-according to a definition by the dairy industry.
the plastic is to keep the moss
constantly moist throughout
the period of root formation.
Leave a little hole on top in
case additional water need
be added.
The new roots should be
sufficiently formed in eight
weeks. However, do not re
move the new plant until a
good root system is visible in
the moss. At this time cut the
new plant below the new
roots and pot. Remove the
plastic and cut the twine be
fore potting but do not disturb
the moss ball. Pay added at
tention to the new plant until
good root development has occurred.
Foulbrood Rises, Ag. Dept. Reports
Salem - More American
foulbrood than in many years
was discovered in 1960 in
spections of Oregon bees, the
state department of agricul
ture reported. The disease is
a killer and highly infectious
in bees but does not affect
honey.
The final summary just re
leased bears out early find
ings. During the season 29,
045 colonies were inspected,
also the greatest coverage in
a number of years.
Statewide. American foul
brood was found in 4.29 per
cent of all colonies inspect
ed. This compares with 2.8S
per cent in 1959. By counties,
the disease incidence ranged
from none to 27.19 per cet.
Counties with over 5 per cent
infection were: Clackamas,
Deschutes, Hood River, Jef
ferson, Lane, Lincoln, Mar
ion, Morrow, Multnomah,
Polk, Umatilla, Washington,
Yamhill.
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THROUGHOUT 'DECEMBER'
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Coming December 18th!
"NOW I CAN SMILE" by ED SULLtVAN-
An exclusive feature1.
He describes the wonderful world that opened up for him
when he finally was able to lick his ulcer problem.
"WHERE ARE THE WOMEN GENIUSESrJ
by Kathleen Norrit
We don't want to spoil this story for you by telling
but we bet you'll be surprised when yon see Miss
Norri8 choice.
"COULD YOU WIN THIS 'GOOD WIFE AWARD?"
by Clark W. Blackburn
A marriage counselling expert gives some thought
provoking advice to women about handling the man in
the house!
"SLEEP TOGS FROM SANTA" by AUyn Rice
Fashions to keep you warm and well-dressed on these
long winter nights . . .
"FOOTBALL'S FUSSIEST, FANCIEST FAKER"
by Robert G. Deindorfer
Baltimore Colt star Ray Berry's zany habits pay off
in points for his team: the author explains how!
"AND ALL THROUGH YOUR HOUSE"
by Melanie DeProft
Elegant, easy-to-make, kitchen-tested recipes for Christ
mas Turkey, cranberry de luxe and all the traditional
dishes you'll want to serve for a complete feast!
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