BETTER FRUIT 



AN ILLUSTRATED MAGAZINE PUBLISHED MONTHLY IN THE INTEREST OF MODERN, PROGRESSIVE FRUIT GROWING AND MARKETING 



Insecticides and Fungicides for Insect and Fungus Troubles 



}iy S. \\*. l-'djilcr. Fiiloniohij^ist, General Ghemicjil Company <if Caliiornki, San Franci.sc4> 



THE most c'c-oiiDiiiifiil spray lh;il 

 can be applied to fiiiit trees is the 

 spray, or eomljiiiation of sprays, 

 lliat will do the most s^ood toward initi- 

 Maling, eoiilrolling or i)reventiiii> the 

 ijreatest pereentaf<e <>!' |)e.st.s, and f^ive 

 llie tree, Iriiit and I'olia.ye protection 

 over the longest lime. Tlie biggest nds- 

 lake, often made b\ fiuitgrowers when 

 llie time comes to spray, is to ligure the 

 cost of the materials in the tank with- 

 out more than a passing thought for the 

 lialanee sheet at the end of the season, 

 or the final elfects on the tree. It often 

 happens that a tank full of spray cost- 

 ing the grower less than one cent per 

 gallon is expensive, when a dilferent 

 combination costing two or three cents 

 per gallon would be fai" more econom- 

 ical. Knowing that two dilferent kinds 

 of material have eciual value, we should 

 of course use the less expensive. But 

 lor the best success we must know that 

 liiey are e<iual or else take the best 

 preparation. 



fn lime-sulphur solution, the amount 

 of sulphur in solution is the important 

 lactor, provided the finished product is 

 a clear licpiid free from sediment. 

 With oil sprays, the amount and grade 

 of oils used (this refers to mineral, ani- 

 mal and vegetable oils) as well as the 

 manner of emidsif>ing and the pene- 

 tration must be taken into considera- 

 tion. With arsenate of lead the amount 

 of arsenic oxide in ])roper combination 

 with lead oxide, together with ease of 

 liandling or Tnixing with water, the 

 adhesive (pialities and a low water 

 soluble-arsenic content ai'e important. 

 In bordeaux mixture the amount of 

 (juickly available cojjper is the valuable 

 element, provided the mass is finely 

 divided to facilitate spreading and ad- 

 hesiveness. 



Fruitgrowei's should become more fa- 

 miliar with the troubles to be treated — 

 sliould watch the troubles more close- 

 1\ —study the nature and habits of the 

 insect or fungus and know the lime 

 and under what conditions it is most 

 susceptible lo trealment with the 

 greatest good and least harm to the 

 tree. Most of the scale insects on 

 deciduous trees are best controlled by 

 spraying during the dormant season. 

 I>ate winter and early spring is prefer- 

 able, provided the work can be done 

 when the trees are dry and the tem- 

 perature is above freezing ])oinl. This 

 treatment, if properly timed, is eO'ective 

 against eggs of green aphis and will 

 control leaf-blister mite. Fungus scab, 

 mildew, codling moth, leaf liopjiers, red 

 spiders, etc., must be looked after din- 

 ing the growing period. 



.lust as the most economical spray is 

 the one that gives the best lesults, so it 

 is that the most economical spray ma- 

 chine is the one that will do the best 

 work, deliver a large volume of spray 

 under high ])ressure, easy to operate, 

 and one that will keep on going. Time 

 is an important factor in spray opera- 

 tions, and the delays caused by break- 

 downs or failure to do the proper work 

 quickly are often more costly than the 

 price of a new and good outfit. Too 



Features of this Issue 



INSECTK IDES AND FUNGICIDES 



FOR INSEJCT AND FUNGUS 



TROUBLES 



SKVBNTH NATIONAL APPLE SHOW 



AND FRLTIT PRODITCTS 



CONGRESS 



PROPER AND THOROUGH 

 SPRAYING 



CROWN GALL 



(■(IMMERCIAI. WALNtTT GROWING 

 IN THE r-NITED STATES 



THK SAN JOSE SCALE INSECT 

 .\PPLE SCAB 



nuich emphasis cannot be ])ut on thor- 

 oughness of the work. In spraying for 

 scale insects ever\ particle of the tree, 

 from the ground to the ti|) of the long- 

 est twigs, must be covered on all sides. 

 l<"or seal) and mildew, all the fruit, fruit 

 clusters, foliage, twigs and limbs must 

 be thoroughl\- coveied. At the first 

 spraying for codling moth every calyx 

 cup should be tilled with poison, and at 

 later sjirayings the surface of every 

 apple coveied with a thin film of spray. 

 To elfectivelx- control red spider, mites 

 and leaf hoppers, cover all foliage on 

 both sides. 



Lime-suljjhur solution is the gener- 

 ally accepted and most widel,\-used 

 treatment for San .lose scale. When 

 this si)ecies alone is to be considered 

 in moderate numbers, or when leaf- 

 blister niitcs and green-aphis e.i'gs are 

 present, it is probably the best-known 

 remedy. It possesses the ad<lcd value 

 of a fungicide, when used in late win- 

 ter, that does much good in checking 

 early develo])menls of scab. For suc- 

 cess in controlling scale insects, how- 

 ever, it must be used at sufficient con- 

 centration to do the work. As a rule, 

 lime-sulphur solution containing 2.5 per 

 cent suli)hur in solution should be used 

 at the rale of 12 gallons for each 111(1 



gallons of spray. A pieparation con- 

 taining less sulphur in solution, regard- 

 less of name or brand, should be used 

 relatively stionger. One containing 2(1 

 per cent sulphur in solution should be 

 u.sed at the rate of 14% gallons for 100 

 gallons of spray. So far as known at 

 this time nothing can be added to lime- 

 sulphur solution to economically in- 

 crease its elliciency against scale insects 

 in winter. If it is a clear licpiid, free 

 from sediment, with all the sulphur 

 and lime in actual sohdion and used at 

 sufficient concentration, under favor- 

 able weather conditions, it will do the 

 work. However, when used in early 

 spring when purple aphis is present 

 the addition of nicotine will be of 

 benefit. 



Oil Sprays. — Various oil emulsions, 

 miscible oils and soluble oils have re- 

 ceived considerable attention during 

 recent years. F'or use during the win- 

 tci', crude-oil emulsion is the more de- 

 sirable for all scale insects, although 

 good results can be obtained with some 

 of the miscible oils and distillate emul- 

 sions when used in the late winter or 

 very earl>- spring. The prepared prod- 

 ucts now on the market differ in com- 

 Ijosition so that it is not feasible to give 

 definite directions for proper dilutions. 

 The reconnnendations of the manufac- 

 turers are usually correct, although it 

 may be necessary lo vary this some- 

 times to meet special cases. When 

 crude-oil emulsion is made by the 

 grower from crude oil or fuel oil pur- 

 chased on the market it should be used 

 at rate of 12 gallons of oil, with sufii- 

 cient soap for emulsifying, to each 100 

 gallons of spra\. (aude-oil emulsion is 

 pai-ticularly valuable for the control of 

 the large I.ecanimn Schlaes (such as the 

 FAU-opean fruit .scale, hemispherical 

 scale, etc.), the scurf\ scale, oyster- 

 shell scale for moss and lichens and 

 for heavy encrustations of San .lose 

 scale where lime-suli)huT- solution does 

 not give sullicient penetiation. 



I'or San .lose scale and blister mite 

 on apples and pears. spTa,\ in the earh 

 spring, as the cluster buds begin to 

 swell, but before opening, using lime- 

 sulphur solution at the rale of 12 gal- 

 lons to each 100 gallons of dilute spray. 

 In addition to conti-olling San .lose 

 scale, this will also aid in controlling 

 the early infections of scab, and will 

 very largely control the green aphis 

 and puriile aphis of apple trees. To 

 make this treatment more ellicacious 

 against heavy infestations of purple 

 aphis. Black Leaf "10" may be added at 

 the rate of 1 pint to 200 gallons of 

 ililute lime-sulphur soluticni. It is imi- 



