454 STATE BOARD OF AGRICUiLTURE. 



broods of that season may develop to serious proportions when weather 

 conditions again become favorable. 



Injury to the first leaves nearly always develops after the use of strong 

 lime-sulphur to destroy psylla eggs, but such injury is not serious nor per- 

 manent. Flower buds may be injured under some conditions and some 

 varieties seem more susceptible than others. Freezing temperatures following 

 the application have a tendency to increase such injury. In order to avoid 

 injury to the blossom buds it is advisable to make the application of strong 

 lime-sulphur not later than when the buds have begun to separate in the 

 cluster and as some varieties blossom earlier than others each one should be 

 sprayed when it reaches the proper stage of development. . 



The practice of spraying with strong lime-sulphur just before the blossom 

 buds have begun to separate in the cluster has several advantages aside from 

 its value in destroying psylla eggs. San Jose scale should be effectively con- 

 trolled at this time; pear leaf blister-mite will be greatly reduced and in dis- 

 tricts where pear scab is prevalent it takes the place of the "pre-pink" appli- 

 cation for scab control. 



Thoroughness of application is a factor of greatest importance and cannot 

 be emphasized too strongly. When spraying to destroy the eggs or hibernat- 

 ing adults every portion of the tree must be covered and when spraying to 

 destroy the nymphs during the summer, thoroughness is even more essential 

 as many of them are likely to be in protected places and every one that 

 escapes may mean a greatly increased number in succeeding broods. The 

 method of application will naturally vary under different conditions but where 

 mature trees are to be sprayed it is suggested that the, work be done by two 

 men; one on top of the sprayer or preferably in a tower and one on the ground. 

 A spray rod with angle nozzle can undoubtedly be used more efficiently than 

 a spray gun by a man spraying from the ground. 



The Control of Brown Eot on Peaches and Plums. 



The loss of fruit in transit. The excessive losses in recent years by growers 

 of peaches, plums and cherries has led the Horticultural Section to carry on 

 a series of experiments to determine if such losses may be prevented. The 

 fruit has been harvested, apparently in good condition, but has decayed 

 sometimes before shipment, but more often while in transit or before finally 

 taken by the consumer. With peaches and plums the trouble has usually 

 been caused by brown rot; with cherries it may have been caused by brown 

 rot in some instances but has usually been caused by some other organism 

 such as white mold. 



In order to avoid such losses it has been necessary to harvest some kinds of 

 fruit, particularly plums, before they have reached a state of maturity which 

 would develop the best quality and color. The practice of putting fruit upon 

 the market in an immature state has probably curtailed consumption and 

 reduced the price in some instances. The consumption of commercially 

 canned plums has undoubtedly been reduced because of the low quahty of 

 fruit which has been picked prematurely. It is evident that any treatment 

 which will prevent losses in transit or permit the fruit to develop more color 

 and flavor would be welcomed by the growers, dealers and consumers. 



Experimental work to develop methods of control. A series of experiments 

 was conducted in 1920 and 1921 to develop, if possible, a satisfactory method 

 of improving the shipping and holding quality of peaches and plums through 

 the control of brown rot at this period. It seems that a late apphcation of a 



