"FIRE BLIGHT" DISEASE.

Taranaki Daily News, 27 February 1920, Page 7

"FIRE BLIGHT" DISEASE.

NOT NEW TO NEW ZEALAND. PREVIOUS CASE AT HASTINGS. "Fire blight," which has been described as a new fruit disease in New Zealand, is an older enemy of orchardists in the Dominion than has been suggested, according to the experiences of a Hawke's Bay grower. Mr. W. F. Wishart, who until recently was a grower at Pakowhai, near Hastings, states that during the season 191617 Mr. Gordon Esara, as acting orchard instructor, investigated a ease in Mr. Wishart's orchard of what he described as "lire blight." The disease, made its appearance in a single night, attacking an entire group of Winter Nelis pears, the blossoms and leaves of which were completely "scorched" as if by a wave of fire. None of th 3 surrounding fruitgrowers had ever had such an experience, nor did they suffer then, and Mr. Esa'm, ! who regarded it as a curiosity, paid re- ! peated visits to the orchard to watch developments. The treatment suggested was spraying with Bordeaux mixture, j The leaves and blossoms gradually fell off, and, of course, tiie crop was absolutely ruined, but other varieties of pears and hundreds of apple trees in the orchard were not affected. The following season these blighted trees yielded a good average crop of pears, and in IUIS-19 a record crop was obtained.