226 ANNUAL REPORT OF THE Ofif. Doc. 



used for fungus diseases. The method of (•oml)iuiiig- inj^i-t'dienls 

 must be understood, or the preparation used is often valueless, and 

 time and material lost Avilh little or no benefit. This is often the 

 cause of failure with lime and sulphur, in destro.yin<^ the San Jose 

 Scale. Another cause is the application is made at the wrong 

 time, too early or too late (time and material will be given under 

 the head of Insects and their Treatment). 



Apparatus 



It is necessary to have a cooker of sufficient size, several barrels 

 or tanks, and a good strong pump that will give a pressure of 100 

 to 150 pounds pressure. Only large size barrel pumps, with a large 

 air chamber, and a long strong handle is capable of giving and 

 maintaining this amount of pressure. This should be firmly at- 

 tached to a barrel or tank, mounted on a wagon or sled. The air 

 chamber and working parts should be inside the barrel, with the 

 piston at the bottom, when it is always primed ready for work thus 

 saving considerable pumping, and at the same time placing the 

 weight low down, making it less liable to upset. Such a pump is 

 sufficient for an orchard not exceeding five to ten acres. Most out- 

 fits are furnished with too short a hose, being impractical for doing 

 good work. Not less than forty feet should be used, and fifty feet 

 is better. There should be an extension pole of eight or ten feet, 

 with a good leakless valve at the bottom with good large nozzles at- 

 tached at the upper end with a bend or angle thirty-five or forty 

 degrees that the spray may be conducted downward into the calix 

 cups. 



For orchards of larger dimensions some good power outfit is es- 

 sential. There are many good power sprayers on the market for 

 the orchardist to select from. Were it not for the deterioration 

 of the lime-sulphur mixture, I would i)refer the gas sprayer, it is 

 one of the best powers, prompt and uniform in its action regardless 

 of the number of nozzles in use. But the Carbon Dioxide renders 

 the spray useless for the destruction of the San Jose Scale. Com- 

 pressed air is another power that is giving very good satisfaction. 



The gasoline engine power seems to be the general favorite, as it 

 gives sufficient power for all purposes, and when not in use as a 

 sprayer the engine can be used for other work on the farm. The 

 one drawback has been that all of the gasoline powers, they require 

 a safty valve to relieve the pressure when the nozzles are closed, 

 returning the liquid to the tank. This is all right as long as the 

 valve lasts, but unfortunately the lime-sulphur solution returned 

 under pressure soon wears away the seat of the valve and it must 

 be reground or a new one put in its place, this is both annoying 

 and expensive. I know of but one maker that has overcome this 

 difficulty, they have a regulator placed between the tank and the 

 pump. It has a piston that is acted upon by the back pressure 

 whenever the nozzles are closed. You set this regulator by a screw 

 at any pressure you wish up to 200 pounds if desired. When the 

 nozzles are closed the back pressure lifts the piston contained in 

 the regulator and cuts off the supply to the pump and lets the 

 engine run empty, thus using less gasoline and relieving the ma- 

 chinery of all strain. I have used one of these regulators this 

 season and it works like a charm. The only objection to this is 



