WORST IN 25 YEARS

Gisborne Herald, Volume LXXI, Issue 21580, 6 December 1944, Page 4

WORST IN 25 YEARS

LGBURN HAILSTORM FRUIT CROPS RUINED U?.A.) CHRISTCHURCH, Dec. 5. The west hailstorm in. 25 years has completely ruined fruit crops in the big fruit-growing district of Loburn. Tlie storm hit the district late yesterday afternoon and at the end of an hour over 4in. of hail lay on the ground. _ The damage to the fruit crops will run into many thousands of pounds, and on top of that all wheat, oats, potatoes] and small seed crops over a wide area have been ruined. The lower Loburn area was not so badly hit as the orchards further up the v.alley. There the fruit was stripped off the trees, which were also denuded of leaves. The stone fruit crops also have been ruined and this, following on the disastrous losses in Central Otago early in the spring, will cause an acute shortage of stone fruits in the coming season.

A representative of one of the leading fruit-broking firms of Wellington who has just returned from a visit to Central Otago confirms the reports r; : frost damage t<? fruit crops in that district. The severity of this visitation, he said, had been in no wry exaggerated. The apricot losses would orobably be worse than was at first feared. Even in those orchards where smoke pots were used (to lessen the effect of the frost), the losses were exceptionally heavy, and other orchnrdists had lost the whole of their crons of this particular fruit for the season.