Report of State Board of Horticulture. 43 



SEMIANNUAL REPORT, OCTOBER, 1902. 



Grants Pass, Oregon, October — , 1902. 

 To the Honorahlc State Board of Horticulture — 



Gentlemen : I respectfully submit to you my semianuiial 

 report as commissioner of the third horticultural district, 

 embracing the counties of Douglas, Coos, Curry, Josephine, 

 Jackson, Lake, and Klamath. 



I luive received and answered during the past two years 

 about four hundred letters from all parts of my district on 

 subjects pertaining to all phases of horticulture, including 

 insect pests, fungus diseases, methods of cultivation, planting- 

 new orchards, pruning, spraying, adaptability of soils to fruit 

 culture, etc. I lind nearly all classes who are growing orchards, 

 the man who grows but an acre or two to the large commer- 

 cial growers, all seeking information on horticultural lines to 

 improve the conditions of the industry. That the fruit grow- 

 ers are adopting modern methods in their business and rapidly 

 improving on practical lines can not be questioned. Their 

 orchards show this when you compare them now with two 

 and three years ago. Methods of spraying have improved, 

 and confidence in spraying for insest pests and fungus diseases 

 has been established in the minds of a majority of the fruit 

 growers. 



Two years ago Olwell Bros, of Central Point did the sprav- 

 ing of their 160-acre orchard with gasoline power, and their 

 success in doing the work rapidly and thorough at fifty per 

 cent less cost tlian it could be done with hand power was an 

 object lesson that many fruit men in this district are now 

 profiting by. In Jackson Count}^ at the present time there 

 are twenty-five gasoline engines used for running spray 

 pumps. The gasoline engines in use are one and a half horse 

 power, called "The Jack of all Trades," and spraying outfit, 

 including pump, hose, tank, with everything ready to go to 

 work, costs about .$200, excepting wagon and team. From a 

 business standpoint Olwell Bros., after using gasoline power 

 three years, are well pleased, as they say their spraying costs 

 them fifty per cent less now than when they used hand power, 

 and they say spraying done by uniform engine power is much 

 more effective than when done by irregular, weak hand power. 

 They claim were gasoline and hand power equal in cost, the 

 saving in effective, thorough work in their orchard would soon 

 pay for a gasoline outfit. 



