FIREBLIGHT MENACE

Poverty Bay Herald, Volume LV, Issue 16873, 9 February 1929, Page 5

FIREBLIGHT MENACE

SOUTH ISLAND OUTBREAK AN ALARMING DISCOVERY (Special to the Herald.) CHRISTCHURCH, tins day. Fireblight, the disease most dreaded by orchardists, has appeared in the South Island. Mr. L. Eaynter, orchard instructor for the South Island, mado the important/but unpleasant, discovery while motoring back to Christchurch from a visit to Nelson. He found a badly-infected hawthorn hedge north of Kaikoura. Mr. Paynter had passed through the country by the usual roads on his northward journey, and found nothing amiss. Certainly he had seen no fireblight. Owing to a had rainstorm flooding tbo rivers he made a wide detour, coming south by an inland road. It was on this less frequented route that ho saw a hawthorn hedge which seemed to be in sickly, or dying, condition. Closer examination confirmed his first fears. He did not wish, however, to cause alarm needlessly, and decided to make quite sure before announcing his discovery. He forwarded specimens of the infected hawthorn to headquarters at. Wellington, there to be viewed by the department’s experts. “ Late yesterday afternoon Mr. Paynter received a telegram from Wellington to say the disease certainly was blight. The disease attacks pip fruit, apples and pears, but its most troublesome host and the worst agent in spreading the pest is hawthorn. It is now about 12 years fcinco the disease first appeared in the North Island. There have been sporadic outbreaks only in some districts, but the menace has been accounted of such gravity that in all areas where commercial fruitgrowing is carried on hawthorn had been ruthlessly destroyed. It may bo possible to prevent the spread of this outbreak, but the news certainly is very had, and orchardists willjpo very gravely concerned about it.