Co-Operatiou in Spraying. 207 



CO-OPERATION IN SPRAYING. 



A citizen of our capital city inquired of me recently as to the cost 

 of spraying an orchard. 



I gave him the figures that our commercial orchardists usually esti- 

 mate of 3 or 4 cents per tree for each spraying. "Where could I get 

 some one to do this spraying for me?" said he. "I would be willing to 

 pay 50 cents per tree for the season and have my orchard sprayed 

 thoroughly and at the right time." I replied that I would be glad to 

 do the work for him at those figures could I spare the time at the right 

 season to do the work. I referred him to one of our orchardists who 

 uses a sprayer and suggested he might make terms with him for doing 

 the work. 



This business man's dilema is but a sampe case of the difficulty 

 experienced by hundreds of our fruit growers who have not the ex- 

 perience or the time needed to perform this important function to suc- 

 cessful orcharding. This same trouble is affecting the general farmer 

 who has a small orchard that is ony made a side Issue to his regular 

 farm work. If such persons would combine together and hire either 

 one of their own number or a man of the right ability outside of their 

 circle to perform this spraying for them under a specific contract it 

 would afford a relief to this one great trouble of the fruit grower. The 

 fruit grower has other troubles, it is true, but there is no one that con- 

 cerns him half as much or should so concern him, as the destruction of 

 the noxious insects that are ever ready to prey upon his orchards and 

 vineyards; and also the prevention of the fungus diseases that are so 

 menacing to the health and even the very life of his orchard. Our 

 commercial orchardists who make this their mainstay for a living are 

 very much alive to the need for these two lines of spraying. They can 

 and will afford, if they are up-to-date, a good machine to do their own 

 spraying. But for the smaller orchards of from one to five or even ten 

 acres it will be a wise and practical plan to co-operate in their spraying 

 work. 



COVERING STRAWBERRIES. 



The season is at hand when the strawberry bed is ready for its 

 winter covering. Such weather as we are having at the time of this 

 writing, however, does not make one feel or think of going into winter 



