Insect and Disease Control 281 



add all the lime and at once add all the sulfur, which pre- 

 viously should have been made into a thick paste with water. 

 After the lime has slaked, about another third of the water 

 should be added, preferably hot, and the cooking should be 

 continued for one hour, when the final dilution may be 

 made, using either hot or cold water, as is most convenient. 

 The boiling due to the slaking of the lime thoroughly mixes 

 the ingredients at the start, but subsequent stirring is 

 necessary if the wash is cooked by direct heat in kettles. 

 If cooked by steam, no stirring will be necessary. After 

 the wash has been prepared, it must be well strained 

 as it is being run into the spray tank. It may be 

 cooked in large kettles, or preferably by steam in barrels 

 or tanks. This wash should be applied promptly after 

 preparation, since, as made by this formula, there is 

 crystallization of the sulfur and hardening of the sediment 

 upon cooling. Probably comparatively few fruit-growers 

 at the present time prepare the wash according to this 

 old method, but employ the commercial or homemade 

 concentrate. 



"The inconvenience experienced in preparing the lime- 

 sulfur wash according to the foregoing formula by cooking 

 with steam or in open kettles at home has been one of the 

 principal objections to this spray. Manufacturers have, 

 therefore, put on the market concentrated solutions of 

 lime-sulfur which have only to be diluted with water for 

 use. These commercial washes, if used at proper strength, 

 have proved to be quite as satisfactory in controlling the 

 scale as the old-formula lime-sulfur wash, and, although 

 somew^hat more expensive, have been adopted by many of 

 the commercial orchardists in preference to the "20-15-50'* 

 formula. They are especially useful for the smaller orchard- 



