Gardner (1930) stated that cracking of cherries may occur simply as a result of high humidity, especially following a dry period. Verner and Blodgett (1931), working with sweet cherries, concluded that, under Idaho conditions, cracking is mainly due to absorption of rain water through the skin of the fruit. They were unable to demonstrate that cracking is caused by application of water to the soil, possibly because the trees with which they were working had, in some portion of their root area,

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... ufficient moisture to keep the fruits growing. By using the specific gravity of the juice, ob tained by a Balling scale hydrometer as a rough measure of osmotic pressure and sugar content, they showed an increased cracking index as osmotic concentration increased. The susceptibility to cracking was measured by placing the fruits in water at various temperatures. The higher the temperature, the higher was the rate of cracking, other factors being the same. According to Carne (1924-1935) cracking of apples in certain seasons is common in western Australia, especially in the variety known as Dunns. Carne noted the most severe cracking on trees which were low in vigor and which bore light crops . He believed the trouble to be ^essentially one of sap movement.H Campbell (1938) states that in New Zealand cracking