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INTERESTING WESTERNERS
The Guardian of Oregon's Orchards
WHEN the pear blight had burned up a half million pear trees in the San Joaquin valley and was beginning a similar work of extermination in the Sacramento valley the federal government sent out a young man named O'Gara to aid in checking the devastating conflagration. This was done so successfully that the pear industry of the Sacramento and adjoining valleys was saved and continues to this day a very profitable pursuit.
By this time, however (1907), the incendiary blight germs had made their way up into southern Oregon and were playing sad havoc with the pear and apple orchards of the Rogue river valley. Proceeding thither, Prof. O'Gara put in two strenuous years battling with blight, gaining complete control over this arch-enemy of fruit trees in the world's premier pear district.
The Oregon orchardists who had thus had their trees saved did not take kindly to the government's orders for O'Gara to move on to other localities, desiring that he remain in their midst and keep the upper hand of the pestiferous pear blight. In order to accomplish this object, Jackson county created the office of pathologist and entomologist, fixing the salary at $5000. This looked good to Prof. O'Gara, who was tired of the continual traveling which his government work necessitated, and also because he had fallen in love with the climate and people of sunny southern Oregon. For three years he has held the abovenamed office, greatly to the profit and satisfaction of the Rogue river horticulturists.
While the waging of a continuous campaign against blight in one hundred square miles of orchards is a man's size job, it didn't begin to absorb all of O'Gara's super-abundant energy. Looking around for a new field of conquest, it was found in the domain of Jack Frost. The easy-going Oregonians were accustomed to having this merry monarch take heavy toll from their orchards every twice in a while. O'Gara got busy and perfected a system of orchard heating which is the most effective and economical in the United States. The first 60,000 heaters which the growers proposed buying were priced by agents at an average cost of about thirty-five cents each. O'Gara investigated the matter thoroughly and found that pots meeting all requirements could be made to order and delivered for nine and one-half cents—a saving of $15,000. Fuel oil containing a large percentage of non inflammable asphaltum had been priced at nine and one-half cents in car lots. After conducting exhaustive tests and taking the matter up with the oil companies, O'Gara found that the best and cheapest fuel for orchard heating was a distillate of about 20 degrees test, from which the useless asphaltum had been removed. This could be delivered in tank cars for four cents a gallon—a saving of another $15,000.
The first attacks of Jack Frost caught many of the orchardists napping. Since the damage is usually done in the latter part of the night, it is not always possible for the fruit-grower to tell the day before what to expect along the line of low temperatures. Although Prof. O'Gara began his meteorological observations in the Rogue river valley in 1908, it was not until March, 1911, that he succeeded in having established at Medford a United States Weather Bureau Station. Through his efforts, six local coöperative weather stations
