426 AGRICULTURE OF MAINE- 



tions of lime and copper sulphate may be prepared, at any con- 

 venient time, sufficient for one application to the entire orchard 

 or for the entire season if the orchard is not too large. Stock 

 solutions are made up so that each gallon when thoroughly 

 stirred carries a known amount of lime or copper sulphate as 

 the case may be — as a rule either one pound or two pounds to 

 the gallon. 



If it is intended to make stock solutions carrying one pound 

 to the gallon place 50 pounds of fresh stone lime in a 50-gallon 

 cask, slake, dilute to thin whitewash, strain while hot and make 

 up to 50 gallons. If arsenate of lead is to be used with the 

 spray the proper amount may be wet up and washed through 

 the strainer with the dilution water. Akvays stir thoroughly, 

 toking particular care to get to the bottom of the cask, before 

 dipping out any of this stock solution, otherwise the first will 

 carry less than a pound to the gallon and the last more. In 

 another 50-gallon barrel suspend 50 pounds of copper sulphate 

 crystals in a sack close to the top, and then fill the barrel with 

 water. The copper sulphate suspended in this way will dis- 

 solve in a few hours, or over night, while if it is placed in the 

 bottom of the barrel it will dissolve with difficulty unless the 

 solution is constantly stirred. Some prefer to make stock solu- 

 tions carrying 2 pounds of lime or copper sulphate to the gallon. 

 In that case use 100 pounds of material instead of 50 in each 

 50-gallon barrel. 



To prepare tlie mixture from the stock solutions, assuming 

 that they carry a pound to the gallon and a 3-3-50 bordeaux is 

 to be made, stir thoroughly and for each 50 gallons of spray 

 dip out 3 gallons of the lime stock into one dilution barrel and 

 3 gallons of the copper sulphate stock into another, add water 

 to make up to 25 gallons each, then quickly and thoroughly 

 mix. If the stock solutions carry 2 pounds of material to the 

 gallon use iYj gallons of each to 50 gallons of mixture. 



Elevated mixing platform. Much of the labor of making 

 bordeaux may be avoided, and better facilities furnished for 

 securing a perfect mixture b}- the use of the elevated mixing 

 platform. This requires four solid posts resting on flat stones 

 or set in the ground and extending above the surface somewhat 

 above the top of the spray tank, to form the supports of the four 

 corners of the platform. These posts should be solidly braced 

 ])v means of crossed boards nailed from one to the other. To 



