EFFECT OF SPRAYING BORDEAUX MIXTURE ON FOLIAGE. 



taken out and to work in plenty of well- 

 rotted manure or superphosphate, with 

 a good handful of salt for each bush. 

 The currant, like the raspberry, is 

 willing to keep shady, but only because 

 it is modest. It is one of the fruits 

 that thrive better among trees than in 

 too dry and sunny exposures. There- 



fore, in economising space of the home 

 acre, it may be grown among smaller 

 trees, or, better still, on the northern or 

 eastern side of a wall or hedge. In 

 giving this and kindred fruits partial 

 shades the bush should not be com- 

 pelled to contend to any extent with 

 the roots of trees. — Bush Fruit Culture. 



THE EFFECT OF SPRAYING BORDEAUX MIX- 

 TURE ON FOLIAGE. 



DN bulletin 86 of the Cornell Experi- 

 ment Station, Mr. E. G. Lodemann 

 makes the statement that the large 

 number of applications of Bordeaux 

 mixture applied at that institution dur- 

 ing the year 1894, seemed to have an 

 influence upon the thickness of the 

 foliage. 



On October the 15th. he says, " leaves 

 were taken from sprayed and unsprayed 

 trees of three varieties of plum — Fellem- 

 ber^, Bradshaw and German prune, — 

 five leaves from each lot, and in all 

 cases from corresponding portions of the 

 trees. In making the sections the ma- 

 terial was uniformly cut from near the 

 midst, in the vicinity of the centre of 

 the leaf, so that no error might creep in 

 under this head. 



, The average measurements were as 

 follows : 



Felleii\ber<j. 



.Spr*,ved— 10.6 micromUIimetree )_ a gaia of 1 9 percent. 

 Uiuprayed— 10.4 " )" from spraying. 



Bradshaw. 

 Sprayed— 10.9 micromiUimetres) a gain 2. S percent. 

 Unsprayed— 10.6 " f from spraying. 



German prune. 

 Sprayed— 12.9 micromillimetres ) a gain of 10.2 percent 

 Unsprayed— 11 7 " i from spraying. 



A micromilametre = .00<.)039 of an inch. 



The difference between the sprayed 

 and unsprayed foliage although slight in 

 the first two cases, was nevertheless in 

 favor of the sprayed foliage. This is 

 plainly shown in the case of the German 

 prune. The particular cells of the plum 



leaves which were enlarged could not be 

 determined with certainty, but the pali- 

 sade cells appeared longer in the spray- 

 ed leaves." 



These statements aroused my curiosity 

 and I suggested the matter to Mr. J. C. 

 Macdonald, one of our third year stu- 

 dents, as a line of investigation which 

 he might pursue with interest and profit 

 to himself and others. He commenced 

 the work in January last and the results 

 of the investigation may be briefly stated 

 as follows : 



It is a well-known fact among those 

 who have sprayed with the Bordeaux 

 mixture, that if the quantity of lime is 

 not sufficient to neutralize the acid pro- 

 perties of the copper sulphate, the leaves 

 to which it is applied will be scorched 

 or burned by the acid ; hence one of the 

 objects of the experiment has been to 

 determine the comparative effect of 

 mixtures containing different quantities 

 of lime. 



Twelve seedlings, having an average 

 height of about 20 inches were used for 

 the experiment. They were potted and 

 placed in the green houses in the first 

 week of January, and forced into leaf 

 On February the roth, the first leaves 

 had attained about half their normal 

 size and the first spraying was done. 



The seedlings were paired as closely 

 as possible, according to size and species; 



99 



