The Tampa Tribune from Tampa, Florida • 46

THE TAMPA TRIBUNE, Sunday. December 25, 19G0 sr-i 77 fi 7H jfT Mil UDeBnuoDciraiTts Annal i IFaairimiieirs SpMit (Dim IPoflfloajs i WASHINGTON Pressures preceding the selection by President-elect John F. Kennedy of Gov. Orville L. Free- man of Minnesota as secretary of agriculture have sparked speculation about future federal farm pro- grams.

The farm post turned out to be one of Leaders of Move Say-Fruit Tops California's By JACK DETWEILEIt Tribune Staff Writer LAKELAND Florida, world leader in most varieties of citrus, may soon climb out of the back seat as far as lemons are concerned. After lingering for over 60 years in near oblivion, the Florida lemon appears on its way to a vigorous comeback. "We're going: to put California out of business," optimistically declares George McClure, production manager for the most difficult for the incoming president to fill. Many persons were considered before Freeman finally was named. All this pointed up one important fact the Democratic party as well as organized agriculture itself is split badly over farm policies.

Within the party itself are the so-called liberals who favor broad use of the powers of the government to bolster farm income, the conservatives who want to get the govern ment out of agriculture, and readers who would stick pretty there are the city Democrats who want to do nothing that wui raise food osts of their constituents. i 'At. Picking green fruit, a worker leans from his ladder in, the Babson Park grove. Fruit picked for processing into concentrate is twice as large as fruit picked for fresh shipments. (Tribune Photos).

liuuy, itiwcm ana Liiouy, ine iirm nas a lemon grove near Babson Park and is acknowledged as the leader in the comeback effort. This spirit is in' marked contrast to the mood 'that has prevailed since Florida's lemon acreage was wiped out by the Great Freeze of 1894-95. Most comment on Florida's lemon deal since then has magnified its problems while minimizing its potential. McCLURE POINTED out much about lemon growing in Florida is still experimental, making it risky for the small operator. But he is convinced Florida can grow lemons equal in quality to California's, and at a fraction of the cost.

Florida is generally conceded an advantage in two important uses of the lemon frozen concentrate and peel oil. The state already bas the processing facilities and know-how developed around orange concentrate, and the timing involved in lemon processing makes it a "natural" associated product. Some still maintain Florida cannot match California in producing a fresh lemon, but McClure has receipts of $7 a half-box on 1,000 boxes of fruit picked early this fall prior to Hurricane Donna. The firm had hoped to market 20,000 boxes before the hurricane struck. i "THEY nAVE more juice, more, acid, and more aroma than California lemons," McClure says.

Florida can also produce lemons at one-third the cost of California lemons and enjoys a freight advantage for most of the nation's major jnarkets, he added. McClure said Libby, McNeill Libby plans to move more extensively into the fresh lemon trade. If a large operator like Libby succeeds, it will back up the views of such veteran Florida lemon shippers as Harold Kendell, Miami, and Frank Chase, Windermere. The comeback of the Florida lemon began with the advent of frozen concentrate. Florida growers and processors began to take a new look at the straggly crop and the pessimistic views that had held it back more than 60 years.

FOR YEARS it was "common knowledge" that Florida' was too cold or too wet for growing lemons. The fruit that somehow managed to survive was said to be subject to a disfiguring scab disease, too big for consumer acceptance, and prone to decay in shipment. Many of these objections were immediately overcome when Florida growers began to think of lemons with processing in mind. Men like Paul B. Dickman, Buskin, who has 300 acres of Meyer lemons, began to take new interest in their, holdings.

Minute Maid Corp. joined with the University of Florida Citrus Experiment Station in a test of 40 varieties in an Avon Park grove. The varieties were among 200 strains of lemon trees found by D. L. C.

Knorr of the experiment station. Libby, McNeill Libby forged ahead in the field with the planting of its grove at Babson Park. Dr. Knorr estimated the state's lemon plantings grew to 3,000 acres during this period, chiefly with the idea of producing juice for lemon concentrate. "WHEN THE young trees survived the freezes of 1957-58, all doubts about Florida being able to grow lemon trees were finally erased.

The only remaining questions standing in the way of a full rebirth of Florida's lemon crop centered around its use in fresh form. During the 1950's Florida was importing an average of 160,300 boxes of California lemons a year. Its own production A grove worker holds large, mature lemons picked for concentrate use at the Babson Park grove of Libby, McNeil Libby. The fruit was still green, with a slight yellow tinge when picked early in December. Itt the fruit mature on the free before picking, put it through a quick de-greening process in the packing house, and ship it to market as soon as possible.

Such practices inevitably led to three common complaints about Florida lemons. They were too large, too coarse, and decayed easily in shipment. Dr. Grierson began working with lemon shippers to develop a method of handling the fruit which was "complete heresy" In terms of the practices employed for other kinds of citrus. INSTEAD of letting the fruit mature on the trees, the fruit was picked on the basis of size in mid-August when it was "hard as a rock and deep green in color." The lemons are then cured in 60-degree temperature.

During the curing process the lemon turns a bright yellow, its skin shrinks and toughens, and its juice and soluble solids content increases. California normally cures its fruit for four months or longer. Since the peak harvesting season there is in January, this permits marketing of the fruit during the hot summer months lemonade weather. Florida had to find a "fast cure" technique. Lemons are picked here when demand for the fruit is high.

Through experimentation Dr. Grierson found that a bright yellow lemon could be produced in 11 to 20 days of curing and would still have more juice than California varieties. AS THE INDUSTRY rose from a sleep of 60 years, It found that new chemicals can control the pesky scab disease and preserve the fruit in shipment. One-by-one the longstanding objections to Florida lemons subsided. The 15-miIlion-box California crop is not troubling Florida growers.

Dr. Grierson noted Florida can market its fruit, especially in the Southeast, at a price that would be "ruinous" to the California industry. W. J. Jones, director of Minute Maid's grove operations, predicts his firm will seriously enter the Florida lemon field in 1963 with a planting of 300 acres of the best variety or varieties found in its testing program.

Like most Florida plantings, the fruit probably will be selected primarily with processing in mind with fresh sales considered a profitable sideline. This one-two punch appears destined to elevate the state to the place it belongs in a citrus field long denied it. THE FARM organizations are divided. The strong Ameri-' can Farm Bureau Federation wants to get government out of agriculture as soon as production can be brought into line withj demands. Its arch rival, the National Farmers Union, wants strong government action.

Somewhere in between is the Na-, tional Grange. i Some of the conservatives, particularly those in the -South, pressed for Gov. Buford Ellington of Tennessee. But the liberals, backed by the Farmers Union and farm belt Democrats of that political complexion, said no. offering instead president Fred V.

Ueinkel of the Missouri Fanners Association. Other names were brought in as Kennedy tried to placate-both sides. These included Rep. George McGovern of South Dakota and Rep. Robert Poage of Texas as well as Freeman." The latter had been passed over in the beginning because he had told Kennedy he did not want the job because he knew, little about agriculture.

WHILE ALL TniS behind-the-scene dickering as well as bickering was going on, there were developments which-indicated Kennedy was giving a second to the farm' program he outlined early in the campaign. That program promised farmers parity of income a return perhaps 20 to 25 per cent higher than the present level and the broad use of government production and marketing controls to help turn off the spigot of farm over-production. This program was warmly endorsed by the liberals and the Farmers Union. The presidential election raised serious questions, how-' ever, as to whether a majority of the farmers wanted such a program. Doubts were raised by the fact that most Mid- -western farm states, went against Kennedy.

President Charles B. Shuman of the Farm Bureau Fed eration declared the election showed farmers did not want the Kennedy program. LAST WEEK, while Kennedy was trying to fill the farm, secretaryship, the Farm Bureau in convention at Denver-adopted resolutions calling for a program sharply different from that of the president-elect. Even while the Farm Bureau was doing this, Kennedy sent the convention a telegram expressing the hope his administration would have the opportunity of working the organization. And Kennedy lieutenants sought the view of the Farm Bureau on the selection of a secretary.

This, however, the farm group leaders declined to give. Another hint as to Kennedy's thinking was his consul- tation with Sen. Clinton P. Anderson of New Mexico, himself a former secretary of agriculture and a conservative in farm policy. i THE ULTIMATE selection of Freeman for the farm cabI- net post may well reflect a Kennedy decision to try to move moderate farm policy.

It is true that Freeman, as indicated" by what statements and commitments he has made, is classic fied as a liberal on farm policies. 1 But, being a politician, and without the long-held bias of most farm leaders, Freeman would be better able and more inclined to help Kennedy seek a new farm approach tharr would a Heinkel -or someone like him who was completely sold' on strong government action to help farmers. The hint of possible compromise was seen in action of Freeman shortly after his designation in making a long distance call to Shuman, the right-wing Farm Bureau president. Yet, there will be strong pressure on the new administra-; tion to stick by the guns of its campaign farm program-promises. Perhaps the strongest will come from the Farmer Union.

It-campaigned hard for the Kennedy ticket, although, many of the states in which it has members voted for Vice President Richard M. Nixon. A I 1 2 iQrai was lnsigniiicani, aunougn iv years ago norma was uui wuj taking care of its domestic needs but shipping 140,000 boxes a year to other states. A reappraisal of the situation by Dr. William Grierson of the experiment station showed Florida's poor lemons were due more to improper techniques than to inferior fruit.

"Nobody treated a lemon like a lemon," he asserted. DR. GRIERSON found that Floridians generally ignored customary practices for handling lemons and treated the fruit much as they would oranges, grapefruit and other citrus" varieties. The normal procedure for marketing Florida citrus is to Ready for shipment to local markets are these Florida lemons harvested prior to Hurricane Donna's passage through the state. Lemon groves sustained heavy fruit losses in the storm.

Economist Sees Strong Demand for Farm Products the middle Freeman close to present programs. And sponsored by the Florida Bankers Association, the Uni-t versity of Florida, and the' Jacksonville branch of the Federal Reserve Bank. These clinics also stressed the fact that which will be necessary as long as people feed and clothe themselves, has becom extremely complex, affecting major segments of the econ- omy. Willard M. Fifield, provosf for agriculture at the UniveN sity of Florida, speaking a( the Crestview clinic, said farin specialists he has queried re port that possibilities for agri-J cultural progress in the next 25 years are awesome.

In the livestock industry, for example, push-button production systems may replace most unskilled labor on farms; scientific feeding programs will be highly emphasized; scientific breeding will produce animals that convert feed more efficiently, grow faster, and provide more tender meat; temperature control and air-conditioning wlU be used in barns, and more 2eed may be synthetically pror duced. GRAVELY TRACTOR ROTARY MOWER TWO FORWARD SPEEDS REVERSE ONE ONLY CUT at Attachments Wake Toii9h Easy 5 HJ. One-Piece Blades No Eelr-No Chains 87-0131 LEE 0PP CO tOf N. OILCHR1ST AVI. 'I? CD I I pit rmmn 1 1 I I I 'H 1 I j.

I 1 i'v It ih Hi fci.i,.inBil)infc.r.r i I Bankers Farm Clinics Note Job Opportunities Programs Ready For Ocala Fat Stock Show OCALA (Special) Programs for the 21st' annual Southeastern Fat Stock Show, Feb. 3-11, are off the press, and can be obtained from county agents or the South-eastern's offices in Ocala. The show is allied this year with the annual all-breed sale of graded bulls sponsored by Marion County Cattlemen's Association. Steers will be judged Friday, Feb. 3.

The steers will be sold Saturday, Feb. 4, and on the same day there will be a 4-H Clubs and FFA meats judging, contest at the Swift and Co. plant here. THE BULLS to be sold, plus all show breeding stock, will be received at the Southeastern Pavilion on Sunday, Feb. 5: graded on Monday, Feb.

6 and sold Feb. 7. Brahman and Shorthorn cattle will be judged Wednesday, Feb. and Angus and Hereford animals Feb. 9.

There will be a barbecue and fish fry Friday evening, Feb. 10. On Saturday, Feb. 11, there will be judging of Char-bray and Charolaise cattle, plus a sale of cattle of those breeds. Many of the cattle to be shown here will move on to the Florida State Fair show-ring at Tampa.

Thompson Ctteil I2y Effj Motirtl TALLAHASSEE, (LTD The Florida Egg Commission Wednesday presented this year's "Good Egg Award" to Commissioner of Agriculture Lee Presented for outstanding service on behalf of the Florida egg industry, the award was given Thompson by egg commission chairman. W. E. Eckler of Delray Beach. Included among previous winners of the award are Gov.

LeRoy Collins, the late Commissioner of Agriculture Nathan Mayo, Earl Nelson, former staff member of the commission, Frank W. Eisher, assistant Florida Marketing Bureau commissioner, and Dr. Marshall O. Watkins, director of the Agriculture Extension Service. economist with the Agricultural Extension Service says consumer buying will probably be one of the strengthening forces during 1961.

Consumer incomes have continued to rise and will probably continue this trend during the coming year. Even though consumer spending has been down in recent months due to increased rate of savings, adds the economist, this trend will likely be reversed during the coming few months. Dr. Moxley says the major strength should be expected in expenditures for food and other non-durables as well as services. Consumers still have a record amount of outstanding credit and are not likely to greatly expand purchases of durable items, he adds.

"Considering all factors favoring business upturns and declines," says the economist, "it appears likely that 1961 will be a year of gradually increasing levels of economic activity. The general price level will likely continue fairly stable." Molk Yottifo Elected My U.S. Group WINTER HAVEN. (Special) David Brengle, son of Mr. and Mrs.

R. T. Brengle and a junior in Winter Haven High School, was elected national secretary of the National Junior Vegetable Growers Association at the convention held in Colorado Springs last week. Brengle is vice president of the Winter Haven Future Farmers of America chapter. Brengle attended the convention along with Bill Cabbie, Winter Haven high school senior, to represent Florida in the national vegetable demonstration contest.

Their demonstration concerning the use of atomic activated seed in order to obtain plant mutations, placed ninth in the production contest John Hester, member of the Pinecrest FFA chapter, also attended as the state winner in the FFA division of the vegetable production contest. The boys were accompanied by L. Warren Harrell, advisor to the Winter Haven chapter. The trip was sponsored by the Florida Fruit and Vegetable Association and the Imperial Polk County FFA Foundation. GAINESVILLE.

(Special) Consumer demand for food and other products of the farm should be at least as strong during 1961 as during the past year, according to a University of Florida economist." Dr. C. C. Moxley, associate Scientists Report On Progress CHICAGO (Special) Two plant breeders working at the University of Florida Agricultural Experiment Station have devised a means of irradiating oats and barley with ultraviolet light and obtaining more satisfactory results than with radioactive isotopes, it was reported before the American Society of Agronomy. Modern plant breeders, in efforts to obtain speedier and more radical changes in plants which they hope to develop int6 desirable new varieties, have been using radioactive isotopes with considerable success.

A. O. Lunden, now with the University of Tennessee's Oak Ridge Laboratory, and A. T. Wallace of the Florida station report they devised a method of treating oat and barley seed with ultraviolet to induce mutations, or changes, in the offspring.

Their method does not cause as many "genes, or plant cells, to die or to be radically malformed and thus a higher percentage of offspring is obtained. Variety Big Factor In Top Pecans GAINESVILLE (Special) The most important factor in producing quality pecans in quantity is the selection of the proper variety, according to a University of Florida horticulturist. William II. Mathews, with the Florida Agricultural Extension Service, says it costs no more to care for a tree producing only a few pounds, producing 60 to 65 pounds of nuts than it does for one producing only a few pounds. Two technicians determine the pesticide residue content of a vegetable in the new mobile food laboratory now in operation in the Belle Glade area by the Florida Department of Agriculture.

They are Sam Draper, left, and Walter Mitchell. 3 Mobile Labs in IJ.sc JACKSONVILLE (Special) The notion that opportunities for careers in agriculture are limited is refuted in the December issue of the Federal Reserve Bank of Atlanta's Bankers Farm Bulletin. Difficult problems in reallocating labor, getting and using capital efficiently, and improving management techniques are occurring in the industry. Solving these creates opportunities not only in farming but in research, engineering, marketing and finance. This was among the impressions gained by those at recent bankers farm clinics co- New Tomato Seed Being Released BRADENTON (Special) A.

limited supply of seed of. a new variety of tomato -called Manapal is being released to commercial seedsmen through the Florida Foundation Seed Producers of Gainesville, according Dr. J. M. Walter of the Gulf Coast Experiment Station.

Manapal is resistant to several fungous diseases and also to such physiological disorders as catface, blossom-end rot and graywalL Dr. Walter says. It possesses an attractive combination 'of size, smoothness and quality of fruit. The new variety has been tested for three years in the Southern Tomato Exchange Program under the label STEP 314. Many growers are already familiar with it.

It resembles Rutgers -in 'wide range of adaptation and ability to withstand unfavorable conditions and still produce a good marketable yield. The supply of seed available now is quite low, due to unfavorable weather conditions during the past three harvest seasons. Dr. Walter says seedsmen interested in obtaining from one to four ounces of seed should get in touch with Florida Foundation Seed Producers, University Station, GainesviUe. plans are being made to lo- cate it permanently in the Belle Glade area where more than 70 per cent of all Flor-'.

ida's vegetables are grown. The smaller unit will then Deadline 3 car For Cattle Show The deadline for filing Florida State Fair cattle show entries falls Dec. 31. i E. Twedell, assistant fair manager, said he expects a near-record number of beef and dairy cattle entries.

Other livestock events in Florida which will interest many persons are special beef, bull and Shetland pony sales at Belle Glade on Dec 19, and the Florida Angus Association sale at the same city (Glades Livestock Market) on Jan. 6. cover other vegetable producing areas in the state. Both trailers will also be used' for other tjrpes of food inspection, with such work including inspection of canned vegetables as they are being packed, inspection of meat food products, the checking of freshly ground cornmeal and testing other miscellaneous food items. Three employes are assigned to each unit and all are well qualified in their particular field of work; said Thompson.

They include a chemist, a lab technician and an inspector. The mobile laboratories, constructed by a Tampa trailer company, are designed for conducting aU types of analyses that affect the food industry. "We are interested in seeing that the raw agricultural commodity and processed foods grown and packed here in Florida reach the consumer in a wholesome condition," Thompson said. TALLAHASSEE (Special) Consumers of Florida fruits and vegetables will get increased protection this year from pesticide residues under an expanded program of the State Department of Agriculture, according to Commissioner Lee Thompson. This residue control project started last year when a mobile unit was sent to major vegetable producing areas to check pesticide residues on various commodities.

Approximately 53,000 pounds of vegetables were destroyed as a result of this program. Thompson reported that this year renewed emphasis would be given to this inspection activity with two mobile units covering the state's growing areas. One unit is ak ready checking vegetables being harvested in the Belle Glade region. A LARGER UNIT is expected to go into action the latter part of this month and.