STATE POMOLOGICAL SOCIETY. 65 



tion — black leaf 40 — dips these branches in and there is no 

 trouble that year, as there would be if the tree were simply 

 sprayed, because of the curled leaves. In bearing orchards, I 

 am obliged to spray with black leaf 40, two years out of three. 

 Those years when I do the dormant spraying for scale late in 

 the spring, I rarely have enough aphis to make further treat- 

 ment necessary. Other years I have to put black leaf 40 into 

 the spray that is applied just after the petals fall. As I have 

 no sca]^, I do not need to apply the pink spray, which is usually 

 the best place to use the black leaf 40 for aphis. We control 

 the pest well enough by putting it in the codling moth spray, 

 thereby giving a triune spray ; the lime-sulphur for cedar rust, 

 the arsenate of lead for codling moth, and the tobacco for 

 aphis, all three in one spray. As far as I can see each is as 

 effective as if applied individually. 



Question : Will you please tell us the amount of black leaf 

 40 for that aphis spray ? 



Mr. Fletcher: We use half a pint to fifty gallons of spray. 

 Some of our growers are making their own tobacco decoction. 

 Virginia is a tobacco growing state. We can get the stems 

 and refuse very cheaply. By simply soaking the stems over 

 night we can recover a large percentage of the nicotine, vary- 

 ing with the kind of tobacco used. After being soaked the 

 stems still retain practically all their fertilizing value and can 

 be used around the trees. I am very much in hopes that the 

 home preparation of tobacco decoction will reduce the cost of 

 this necessary spray material. 



Question : You consider that the best spray to control aphis ? 

 Mr. Fletcher: I know of nothing better. 

 Home-made Lime-Sulphur. I make my concentrated lime- 

 sulphur, and have for four years. I see no reason for paying 

 $7 to $8 a barrel when I can make it at home for $3. I have 

 40 acres of bearing orchard 25 years old. The cost of the out- 

 fit for making this preparation at home was $50. For $40 I 

 bought a steam feed cooker, which is a small boiler, about one 

 and one-half horse power. There had to be also some piping 

 connections. This boils 50 gallons of material at a time. I use 

 100 pounds of commercial sulphur, 50 pounds of quick lime, to 

 make 50 gallons of the concentrated solution. Many of our 

 growers get better results with hydrated lime ; it enters into 



