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5-.B THE CHRONICLE, Clinton, S. C., September 11, 1969 TIPI from clemson FARMS and FOLKS HOME & BY HAROLD ROGERS Assistant Extension Editor WALHALLA - It’s apple picking time again in Oconee. Here on the ridges around Long Creek and Mountain Rest where tree-studded slopes reach for the sky, pickers are prowling over the trees. During the sea son they 11 be pouring out to mar kets the Golden Delicious, the Double Reds, the Staymams, the Red Winesaps, and other top var ieties. Growers have really become serious about this apple business here in Oconee in recent years. And they’re still forging ahead, expanding, improving. County Agent J. C. Morgan says there are some 130,000 trees spread out over the hills. “In two to three more years when they’re all in full production we should be picking a million bushel of apples a season,“Mor gan says. That would mean a mar ket value of $3 to $4 million- under present economic condi tions. Oconee has long been the home of “mountainapples,"butaccord ing to Morgan the producers got down to cases around 1954, when they organized the Long Creek Apple Marketing Authority and built the first packing shed. Now there are 11 sheds in op eration. The three newest just completed for this season were put in by Vernon Davenport, N. B. Matheson and Horseshoe Lake Farms. With Morgan as host, there was a quick sweep through the country and a look at several of the or chards. Many of them were just cranking up for the new season. Fred Chastain at Mountain Rest is one of the veteran growers. He’s been at it for some 20 years. Has about 500 trees, not all in production. Many of the trees were low-limbed with heavy fruit, sagging under the beautiful Reds and Golden Delicious. Like everybody else, he’s hav ing trouble getting them picked. “We pick as many people as we can,“ he says, “but that’s not many.* >r a': BY ANNE ASHLEY Q. Do you have any suggestions for putting hard tips on raw- hide shoelaces, belt lacings, etc., for easier lacing? A. Try holding the ends of these laces in the flame of a lighted match, slowly rotating the end of the lace, and taking care not to char the leather. Give it the heat treatment Just long enough to harden the tip sufficiently with out burning the leather. Q. My homemade biscuits al ways look unattractively pale. How can I give them a heal- their-looking golden brown co lor? A. Simply by adding a teaspoon of sugar to the dry ingredients. Q. How can I make candies from the rinds of lemons, oranges, and grapefruit? A. Boil these pieces two or three times until the water is clear, then boil again with sugar added to taste, and until the rind is soft and sweet. Q. How can I make a good sil verware cleaner? A. One fine agent for cleaning silverware is common lump starch, rubbed on a damp cloth, allowed to remain on for a few minutes, then rubbed dry with cheesecloth. Q. How about holes in fiber glass fabrics? A. You can darn these with fiberglass yarn or sew on a patch of matching fabric with cotton thread. Patches can also be glued to the fabric, but you must use methyl methacrylate “ invisible glue.” Q. How can I deal with mildew stains on white linens? A. Boll the linens in water in which two tablespoons of baking soda have been added for each quart of water. Many other tips on the treatment of mildew are discussed fully in my household- hints book. Q. How can I treat some cracks ^ in wooden salad or chopping bowls? A. These can usually be very nicely sealed if, after cleaning and drying them thoroughly, you pour ffhfliia<» into the cracks. Q. What can I do about deep ■cratches or gouges in a wood floor? A. Fill them with plastic wood. This must be stained to the color of the floor before you apply it, and it’s best to make several last batches first After the plas tic hardens, sand it smooth. Cutting across to Long Creek, there was a stop by N. B. Mathe- sons’ new shed, where he was putting in the finishing touches. “We can pack up to 100 bushels an hour,” he said. Morgan also pointed out the new cold storage unit, the only one in the county so far. They can use it to store apples temporarily, giving a better break on marketing. Federal inspector Grady Crumpton was there at Mathe son’s, and he mentioned recent winds which had hit the area. “They didn’t do the apples any good, “ he said, talking about the buffeting and bumping. Seems that apple growers have to worry about nearly everything. On up the road, there was a stop at Glenn Lee’s place. He’s got something unusual. In addi tion to volume sales, he has a do-it-yourself road stand. Customers can stop, weigh out their fruit, and leave the money. “It’s working out all right," Lee said. The new packing shed at Horse shoe Lake was next. It’s a fine setup. They were pouring apples through with all the delicacy of eggs, as sensi tive machinery and deft hands combined to separate, grade and pack the fruit ready for the road. Big transfer trucks were park ed around the lot awaiting car goes. There out-of-state tags backed up Morgan’s statement that “Oconee apples are going east and west.” Farm supervisor Kenneth Matheson was overseeing all of the operations, and everything seemed to be rolling like clock work. One interesting feature was the float system for unloading apples from the field. As folk lifts brought in the huge bins of loose fruit they were lifted off by an elevator and then, bins and all, slowly lowered into a large vat of water. The apples simply floated to the top of the water and were channeled onto conveyor belts. That little hit of bruise-free unloading, used widely in the in dustry, represented ingenuity on the part of somebody. Q. I am sending cuttings from azaleas in poor condition. Can you diagnose the trouble? These were watered freely. J.C.D., Fountain Inn. A. Since the specimen con tained only the upper portion of the plants we do not find clues as to the exact cause. Common causes for such problems in clude: excessive fertilizer ap plied too close; cold injury to the main stem or lower branches, which may not show up until sum mer when plants come under stress conditions. There are also other causes. Your county agent probably has a circular on a- zaleas which will help avoid these problems. -- F. H. Smith, as sociate Extension specialist, plant pathology. Q. Large ants keep coming into the house, in every room and on the front porch. Where are they coming from? We have a large old tree close to the house and wondered if that may be the source. C. S. K., Greenville, B. L. C. Seneca A. Your pest is almost cer tainly the carpenter ant. They are noticeable because of their large size and biting ability. Their name comes from their ability to cut and bit into wood. They show preference for moist, rotting timers. And they swarm in the spring. Chlordane five percent dust or two to three percent spray is effective when injected into the nest. Surface applications are of value -- W. C. Nettles, principal Extension specialist, entomology and plant pathology. Q. Our pecan trees bloom but never have nuts. What is needed here? I. M. Laurens. A. There could be a number of reasons. If no small nuts ap pear, lack of pollination caused by rainy weather or an adequate source of pollen could be the reason. However, if nuts are set and fail to mature properly, dis eases are likely the cause. The most common disease is scab. If poor pollination is the cause, you might correct the situation by planting an additional variety such as Desirable. If disease is the real problem, spray pro grams will be the answer. -- R. J. Ferree, principal Extension specialist, horticulture. A Department of Labor survey discloses that handicapped work ers compare favorably with their able-bodied co-workers in pro duction, efficiency, safety, and attendance. Their turnover rate in jobs is much lower than that of able-bodied workers. Ability HOWTO GET TO NEWT0RK FOR A DOLLAR. i ;.'.i • . S / **£..>* sT'. ■ £ >• ■ * If you time it right, you can get to New York City, or practically anyplace else in the United States (except Alaska and Hawaii), for a dollar or less, plus tax. Just dial long distance direct, weekdays after 7 p.m. or any time Saturday or Sunday. You'll never pay more than a dollar for the first three minutes. And usually you'll pay a lot less. Southern Bell Free Education Most Important Public Service BY M. L. OUTZ County Agent Free education is probably the most important of all the public services. I recall having to stay out of school to pick cotton and when needed to plant it. Such jobs as carrying fertilizer to the dis tributor and keeping seed in the planter were jobs well suited for growing boys. In addition, I had a cow to milk before walking a full mile to school each day. But things have changed. The bus now comes to the door and there are no cows to milk or fergilizer to carry. But the school is there waiting for that youngs ter. It is much better equipped with teachers and facilities. It is my sincere hope that all of our rural citizens will see that their children go to school. An education provides good jobs, better homes, which results in a much higher standard of living. I think everyone has sympathy for the underpriviledged. How ever, here is service very ex pensive and free to all. But taken with a grain of salt by too many of our citizens. Education is the key to the future and certainly hope the school houses are pack ed in Laurens County this fall. The County Clean-up program is certainly on the drag. It seems that local community leaders are aware of the situation that exists but somehow haven’t found it bad enough to do something about it. The county has purchased equip ment to at least make a start at handling the situation. Timber companies in some cases have indicated they would permit dumps to be located on their porperty. However, unless they are asked, of course, they aren’t interested. It is import ant that each community make an effort to have the situation cor rected. There is no one to do this part but the communities them selves and frankly I don’t think there should be. It is our hope to purchase rat bait consentrate this fall and have it mixed, placed in seed stores along with country stores so an all out effort can be made to lower the rat population in the county. We hope to get this done in October, so be on the look out. * * * Smokey Say»: SOMEHOW, SOMEWHERE, SOMEBODY was careless with FIRE! For the 1.5 million men and women holding general or “ other- than-honor able’ discharges from the Armed forces, the Depart ment of Labor offers a special service which might make them more a acceptable to employers. The Department will help these people obtain an Exemplary Re habilitation Certificate which would document their food be havior over a three-year period. ^^c/k WALL-TO-WALL CARPET Installed By Experts At Prices You. Can Afford To Pay. Call For Free Shop-At-Home Service ^ No Obligation — 833-2275 .•.v.v.v.v.w.v.v.v.v.v.v.v.y.v.v.v.y.v.y.y.v.v.v.*.*.v. •••••. v.v.v.*.vA , a:.*'.; I Joanna Plant No. 16 employees Annie Werts, Naomi Wicker. Leona Bridges and Herman Fulmer (left to right) pause by the warper in their plant. We're Proud of Our Fabrics They Go Into Some of The Finest Garments And Products Made. Yes, the fine employees at Joanna Plant No. 16, like all of the Greenwood Mills employees, are proud of the quality fabrics they produce. At Joanna No. 16, batiste and broadcloth of cotton and polyester fiber are produced. From the batiste, shirts, blouses, and other women’s wear are made. Shirts and blouses are also made from the broadcloth. Greenwood Mills employees, like these folks, are good citizens as well as good textile manufacturers. Mrs. Werts, a quiller tender in Plant No. 16, is active in Bush River Baptist Church. She’s a member of the Wom en’s Missionary Union and helps with the church nursery. She’s part of a large Joanna Plants family. Her husband, W. T. Werts, is a slasher fore man for Plant No. 14. A brother, Norman Floyd, is office manager, and another brother, Guy Floyd, is a Plant No. 14 slasher helper. A sister- in-law, Geneva Floyd, is a Plant No. 15 spooler tender, and a brother-in- law, Harold Hunter, is a Plant No. 16 slasher foreman. She and Mr. Werts are parents of three daughters, Mrs. Tommie Danielson, Rachel and Betsy. Mrs. Wicker, a weaver, lives in Newberry and attends Little River-Domi- nick Presbyterian Church, where she teaches a Sunday School class and is an adult advisor for the Junior High Youth group. Her husband, Marion E. Wicker, is a weaver in Plant No. 15, and four brothers also are employ ees of the Joanna Plants. Tallie Crapps is a Plant No. 15 Supervisor of weaving, Felton Crapps is a slubber tender in the Plant No. 14 carding department, Earl Crapps is a ty-in machine operator in the Plant No. 15 weave room, and Tillman Crapps is a Plant No. 16 fixer in the spinning room. She and Mr. Wicker are parents of two children, Edwin and Karen. Mrs. Bridges is a cloth grader. She attends Joanna’s First Baptist Church, and enjoys the outdoor hobbies of fishing and gardening. Her husband, Hozie Bridges, is a frame tender in Plant No. 13. And, her son- in-law, James R. Bishop, Jr., is a fixer in the Plant No. 15 spooling depart ment. She and Mr. Bridges are the parents of a daughter, Joan Bridges Bishop, and a son, Steve. Fulmer, an overhauler in Plant No. 16, lives outside Pomaria and attends Enoree Baptist Church with his family. He and his wife, Llewella, are parents of three children, Herman, Jr., 7, Ramona, 6, and Carl, 3. He is a member of Woodmen of the World and enjoys fishing, hunting and gar dening as hobbies. Yes, producing fine textiles is a way of life for Greenwood Mills em ployees! They enjoy doing a good job in their plants and they enjoy mak ing their communities better places to live by being good citizens. •« V I £ V $ ODD MILLS Ioanna Plants AN EQUAL OPPORTUNITY EMPLOYER 1