HAILSTORM CAUSES HUGE GARDEN LOSSES

Chronicle (Levin), 21 October 1947, Page 8

HAILSTORM CAUSES HUGE GARDEN LOSSES

NAPIER, Oet. 20. Losses running into tens of thousands of pounds in the market garden area of Bay View, near Napier, have been revealed by a survey, following one of the worst hailstorms In the history of the distriet. The hailstorm occurred ^n Saturday afternoon and an inspection yesterday showed that practically the entire spring erop of toinatoes and other vegetables has been destroyed. The disgster follows on the heels of the ravages eaused by the red-legged earth mite last season when growers lost a great proportion of early erops through the activities of this pest. The ■itorm cut a wide swathe aeross the market garden area, Hailstones as 'arge as pigeons' eggs were lying four 'nehes deep on gardens. In the 20 minutes of the storm 's duration, over i quarter of a million reeently planted tomato plants were cut to the ground, only the bare stalks remaining. Aere lpon aere of green peas, broad beans, ?rench beans, beets, cabbages, cauliflowers and melons were stripped and battered by the hail. Growers declare that the crops will not be marketable, and there is little ihance of recovery. They will be unable to replant the tomatoes as the number of plants required is not available. Some growers who had not planted their crops had tomatoes out in boxes hardening . oif, and these were completely stripped. In some paddocks where up to 40,000 tomato plant3 had been thriving, nothing remains but inch high stalks protruding from the ground. No aecurate estimqte of the damage is possible, but the tomato plants cost growers £4 10s per 1000, and the average yield from 1000 plants is about £150. The jnain Hawke 's Bay fruit-growing area escaped the path of the storm by the narrow margin of about five niiles.