DR. MCKAY: Now I am going to take up the problems that have been sent in by mail. The one dealing with early vegetating and frost damage to Persian walnuts was sent in by the most people.
Mr. Snyder lives in a fairly cold country. I am going to ask him to give us his ideas on this problem and what might be done with it.
MR. SNYDER: I am not qualified to discuss that problem, because we can't do anything much with Carpathian walnuts. We do have some grafted this year, and we will have one, in particular, Carpathian, No. 5—I don't know where it got that number—Crath No. 5, I believe it is, on a young grafted black walnut tree which is ripening up almost ahead of the black walnut, and both have made a remarkable growth. But so far as the spring is concerned, I don't know how they will come out.
DR. MCKAY: Mr. Bernath, what are your views? You live in a fairly cold area. You propagate Persian walnuts. What is your opinion of this problem?
MR. BERNATH: Well, there is a way to help that situation. After the ground freezes, keep that ground frozen. That will delay the growth of that tree, if you have the time and patience to keep the ground frozen.
MR. SNYDER: I don't believe it.
MR. BERNATH: Yes, it will.
DR. MCKAY: It seems to me we have a difference of opinion here between Mr. Snyder and Mr. Bernath. The question is this: During a warm spell in the spring will a tree with frozen roots grow up here in the air. That's the question.
(There was a chorus of "yes"es from the audience).
MR. STOKE: I would say that one good solution is to select late vegetating varieties. Mr. Oakes in a report to me on the blooming habits of Persian walnuts, stated that the variety Schaeffer did not start growth until the 29th of April. That is almost four weeks later than most other varieties. And I know from the tabulations that I have made that some varieties are weeks ahead of others. So let's select the late varieties that are good and worthwhile and plant those.