REPORT OF THE HORTICULTURIST 125 



SESSIONAL PAPER No. 16 



fruit who, if they spray at all, do not do it systematically. If the results from spray- 

 ing to control the Apple Spot and some other diseases were as self-evident every year 

 as spraying to kill the San Jose scale and potato beetle there would be no diificulty in 

 persuading fruit growers of the importance of spraying, but sometimes when spot 

 does not happen to be troublesome those who do not spray may have as clean fruit as 

 he who does. But the experience of the most successful fruit growers is that it does 

 not pay to take chances, and that the best results follow, taking one year with another, 

 when spraying is done regularly every year. 



EXPERIMENTS IN SPRAYING, 1908, TO CONTROL GOOSEBERRY MILDEW. 



As good results were said to have been obtained elsewhere from the use of the 

 lime sulphur wash in controlling gooseberry mildew, a number of varieties of English 

 gooseberries usually more or less affected with the disease were sprayed in 1908 with 

 the lime-sulphur wash made here in the proportion of 12 lbs. sulphur, 12 lbs. lime and 

 40 gallons water, and the Niagara Brand lime-sulphur wash. The V-I Fluid was 

 also tried. In most cases five bushes of each variety were sprayed, leaving one bush 

 of each unsprayed. The bushes were sprayed on May 1, 1908, with the home-made 

 lime-sulphur wash when the leaves of most varieties were showing green and begin- 

 ning to expand. A second spraying was made with this wash on May 2, as it rained 

 within an hour after the first spraying. The Niagara Brand lime-sulphur and V-I 

 Fluid were both used on May 2. There was not nearly as much mildew in 1908 as 

 usual, but this was evidently not due to the spraying, as no difference in the amount 

 of mildew could be seen on the sprayed and unsprayed bushes, when notes were taken 

 on June 6 and also just before picking. As there was little inildew this year, even on 

 unsprayed bushes, no conclusions could be drawn from these experiments as to the 

 value of the lime-sulphur washes in controlling gooseberry mildew. 



TO CONTROL APHIS. 



Several mixtures were used in 1908 for aphis on apple trees, this insect being very 

 troublesome in 1908, appearing in great numbers on the young trees. Eighteen young 

 apple trees, in most cases, were sprayed with each mixture on July 28, with the fol- 

 lowing results : — 



Flour Emulsion (5 lbs. flour, 4^ gallons kerosene, 36 gallons water) : — 



July 29. — Aphis almost all dead on a few leaves and a considerable number dead 

 on many leaves. 



McDougall's Insecticide and Fungicide Wash (^ pint to 5 gallons water) : — 



July 29. — Aphis almost all dead on many leaves. 



V-2 Fluid (latest brand) :— 



July 29. — A considerable number of aphis killed but nor so many as with some 

 other insecticides. The V-2 Fluid used was not the one originally received, but an 

 improved mixture received from the company later. 



Niagara Brand Lime-Sulphur Wash (1 gallon to 50 gallons water) : — 



July 29. — Few, if any, aphis were killed. 



Target Brand Fungicide (1 gallon to 100 gallons water) : — 



July 29. — A considerable number of aphis were killed. It was not claimed that 

 this mixture would kill aphis. 



Whale Oil Soap (1 lb. to 6 gallons water) : — 



July 29. — Most of the aphis were killed where hit. Eight trees sprayed in this 

 case. 



Of the mixtures used, the Whale Oil Soap and McDougall's Insecticide gave the 

 best results, both apparently killing what aphis were hit. It is very difficult to destroy 



