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Culture of Stone Fruits and Grapes in Central Chile 22 The production of stone fruits and grapes is of great importance to the whole economy of Chile. The major problem is spring frosts during the blooming period. Research should be done on cultural tech- niques to protect blossoms and on the use of bloom-delaying chemicals. Initially, the most appropriate step would seem to be the training of graduate students or scientists from Chile at institutions in the United States presently involved in this type of research. Persons at the meeting who expressed interest in this work were Sergio F. Nome, Antonio Lizana, and c. J. Weiser.* The persons named below are active in this field. It may be de- sirable to get in touch with them in the future. In Argentina: M. Abel, Sarasota, Argentina. In the United States: R. Ure, Colorado State University; E. L. Proebsting, Washington State University; M. N. Westwood, Oregon State University; T. D. Walker, Purdue University, Indiana; J. N. Corgan, New Mexico State University. Culture of Sugarcane in Northwestern Argentina Northwestern Argentina provides 90% of the national production of sugarcane. Frosts to -5° C and low temperatures limit production to a serious extent. Research on the following aspects of the problem is warranted: breeding of resistant varieties, the mechanism of frost injury, and reduced production at low but not freezing temperatures. The agronomy faculty at Tucuman is investigating the use of chemicals to induce resistance. Persons at the meeting who expressed interest in this research included J. c. Ledesma, H. F. Hodges, and s. H. West.* * For identification, see Appendix B.
23 HEAT TOLERANCE Summary of Program Heat tolerance is an important factor in worldwide crop production, both in the tropical plains and, during the summer in subtropical re- gions. Many of these areas are suitable for large-scale mechanized agri- culture but so far are not being used to their fullest potential, partly because of lack of heat-tolerant varieties of crop plants. Heat tolerance is here defined as the ability of plants to with- stand high temperatures at the cellular level and to produce maximum yield at temperatures higher than optimum. At this IBP conference only one paper was presented on heat toler- ance at the cellular level. This paper emphasized thermostability of protein and enzymes and methods of testing for heat tolerance. On a worldwide basis, not enough attention is being given to re- search on heat tolerance. In view of this, there is urgent need for cooperative programs. Specific Problems The following specific problems relate to heat tolerance at the cellular level: ⢠Need for standardized equipment and tests (tissue, pollen, etc.) ⢠Correlation of laboratory tests with field yield ⢠Determination of critical stages in growth cycle ⢠Coordination with work on other environmental stresses The following specific problems relate to tolerance of higher than optimum temperatures: ⢠Development of tests for studying adaptation to high day tempera- ture or high night temperature ⢠Determination of availability of crop species adapted to higher temperatures
