FORTY-FIFTH ANNUAL REPORT. 125 



not be told without experience. There must be some cut and try busi- 

 ness before he is able to say definitely whether any certain or particu- 

 lar method is the best for his individual use. 



In the discussion of this question I desire first to say that there are 

 certain principles that we all know can be applied at all times and 

 with all kinds of fruit. Followino^ the few remarks I may make we 

 hope to have a general debate on this subject of spraying. I am frank 

 to say that I have nothing new to offer in the way of a spraying form- 

 ula. There are many stjies of spraying equipment and there has been 

 a decided improvement in it during the past few years so that you 

 would hardly make a mistake in buying any of the standard make of 

 equipments. 



I will say in this connection if I had large operations and could have 

 them at home instead of in different parts of the country as I do, I 

 would equip so as to save a good deal of time and money that are now 

 spent on the property of somebody else. For the last six or seven 

 years in the orchards we have been operating it has taken us longer 

 to come and go than it would to spray out a 200 gallon tank. At home 

 we can do awaj^ with this. 



I have had to change my methods from that which has been recom- 

 mended, which you have always heard at all of our meetings and by 

 all the Agricultural Colleges and especially along the line of fine misty 

 spraying. That is what was recommended years ago, when we first 

 began spraying but we have found out that for various reasons that 

 it does not work satisfactorily. It is my opinion that the day for the 

 fine misty spray has gone by. Now we use a coarse, heavy spray be- 

 cause we often have to spray against the wind. We finish up an orchard 

 before Ave leave it because we cannot afford to run back and forth from 

 one orchard to another two or three miles apart. We use a heavy 

 nozzle and under high pressure and we spray against the wind. This 

 you could not do with a fine spray. As it is we can drive it clear 

 through the tree, all through its branches on both sides of the leaves 

 and the work is thereby made really effectual. You will say that this 

 is a waste of material — that we use more material than is necessary 

 but time is worth more than material. 



This year the scale has not been very bad and people have been 

 liable to get a little lax in their spraying for it. Then the first they 

 know there comes a hot season favorable to the breeding of the scale 

 and then there will be a great many of them. So even though the pest 

 has not been very bad I would caution you to be very thorough in your 

 work of spraying for it, even though it is not bad. 



On the other hand if you have an orchard that is bad with the scale 

 there is one way to get rid of that scale. We had a couple of these 

 orchards in one district and the ordinary spray that we had been giv- 

 ing for scale did not control it — it was too bad. Even with all the 

 thoroughness with Avhich we sprayed. The next year I said to the boys, 

 "You spray those trees going on both sides of the tree and then when 

 you get through, spray crosswise," — and I want to tell yon that did the 

 business. 



Another thing, some do not go into the tops of the trees. The little 



