February, 191 1 



THE CANADIAN HORTICULTURIST 



29 



I 



low for foaming, and in view of the iiot 

 mixture being somewhat inflammable, the 

 fire should not be allowed to blaze above 

 the edge of the kettle. 



W'hen the ter'inernture approaches two 

 h'ndred and sixtv de?vrees Fah., the 

 rooking requires close attention, and if 

 the mixture foams uo near the top of the 

 kettle, it may be advisnble to subdue the 

 fire for a time, or until the temperature 

 reaches two hu.ndred and se\enty decrees 

 when the foaming ceases. Under no cir- 

 cunist'mces should the cooking be done 

 in or near a building, unless of course, a 

 steam coil or jacketed kett'e is used. If 

 steam to a pressure of abo'.it sixty pounds 

 is available, a jacketed kettle will be 

 found most convenient. The operation 

 of cookinsr whether done over a fire or 

 by steam should not require more than 

 thirty minutes. 



When the required temperature is 

 reached the kettle should in^mediately be 

 removed from the fire, or the fire quicklv 

 subdued by means of sand or drv soil. 

 The hot mixture should be transferred ti- 

 a larger vessel and the kerosene imme- 

 diately added then the water. Serious re- 

 sults may occur if the water is added be- 

 fore the kerosene. Both the kerosene and 

 water should be poured in slowlv while 

 the whole is being stirred. 



The emulsifier when properly made and 

 at the ordinary temperature is quite 

 liquid, somewhat stringy, and when held 

 !n a glass to the light, of a clear, reddish- 

 brown color. It remains in good condi- 

 tion indefinitely — a sample at the end of 

 eic^hteen months was found to just as ef- 

 ficient as at the beginning. In view of its 

 keeping quality it may be made up during 

 rough weather or slack seasons. 



THE "SOLUBLE OIL" 



.'Mthough the "soluble oil" remains in 

 good condition for a long time, it seems 

 advisable to delay its preparation till 

 spraying time. It is readily made up 

 without the application of heat, .\fter 

 thoroughly stirring up the emulsifier, the 

 ingredients are simply brought together 

 in the following order: Emulsifier, eight 

 parts; crude petroleum, twenty-three 

 arts; rosin oil, four parts; water, onr 

 'part (more if necessary). 



When the ingredients are brought to- 

 gether in the above proportions they 

 should be vigorously stirred. With large 

 batches, a garden hoe may be convenient- 

 ly u.sed for this purpose. At first the 

 mixture When stirred will appear thin and 

 sound harsh, but soon becornes thicker 

 .ind smoother. W'hen this condition is 

 attained the soluble oil is complete. A 

 test may be conveniently made by pour- 

 ing a few drops in a glass of water. .\ 

 white or milk-like emulsion should be the 

 result. 



In view of the variable character ol 

 crude petroleum the proportion suggested 

 occasionally fails to produce a .soluble 



Winter PrnaiDf at the 



(Photo sent by 



oil. As a rule, a slight increase in the 

 proportion of water will produce the de- 

 sired effect. The quantity which may be 

 used depends greatly upon the quality of 

 the crude petroleum and to some extent 

 upon the efficiency of the emulsifier. With 

 a well-made emulsifier and a good quality 

 of crude petroleum, as many as forty-five 

 parts of the latter have been used with ex- 

 (X'llent results. The emulsifier and the 

 rosin oil being the more expensive items 

 in the production of a soluble oil, it is 

 important that they be made to carry as 

 much crude petroleum as possible. In 

 other words the cost per gallon of soluble 

 oil is reduced by increasing the proportion 

 of crude petroleum. 



DIKEOTION8 FOR USE 



The amount of spray material required 

 per tree varies from one quart for young 

 trees to five or six gallons for large apple 

 trees. For every 1000 gallons of emulsion 

 or spray mixture, approximately the fol- 

 lowing quantities are required : 



Carbolic acid, two and one-quarter gal- 

 lons. 



Fish oil, two and three-quarters gal- 

 lons. 



Caustic potash, five pounds. 



Kerosene, three and three-quarters gal- 

 lons. 



Crude petroleum, forty gallons. 



Rosin oil, seven gallons. 



One gallon of "soluble oil" to fifteen 

 of water is recommended, although a 

 weaker sf>lution, one to nineteen, has pro- 

 dui'ed good results. If the "soluble oil" 

 has been standing long after being made, 

 it should be thoroughly stirred before us- 

 ing. \\'hen satisfied that it will readily 

 mix with water, three gallons may be 

 poured into a fifty-gallon spray barrel 

 which is afterwards filled with water. 

 This will give aproximately the proper 

 proportion. 



It is extremely important that clean 

 utensils be used. .\ Ijarrel in which Bor- 

 deaux mixture has been used, is unsafe 



CoUitrcam Ruck, B.C. 



Mr. R. T. Boies). 



for oil emulsion unless vtry thoroughly 

 cleansed. The small amount of copper 

 sulphate which clings to the inside of the 

 barrel is enough to cause a separation of 

 the oil and water. Lime and sulphur have 

 a similar influence, but this mixture acts 

 more slowly. Neither arsenate of lead 

 nor Paris green has shown any such ten- 

 dency. 



The use of the agitator is not essential. 

 An occasional stirring with a dasher of 

 some kind will answer the purpo.se. 



APPLY THOROUGHLY 



Thoroughness of application is of ut- 

 most importance ; every portion of the 

 tree must be covered with a film of oil. In 

 the case of badly infested orchards, two 

 aplications are recommended, one in the 

 fall and the other in the spring. As a re- 

 gular practice, however, one thorough 

 application a year should keep the insect 

 in check. With the use of a fine nozzle 

 and abundant power, more thorough and 

 more economical work may be done. 

 Many insects hibernate under bud-scales 

 and among plant hairs, and will e.scape 

 the spray unless it is applied with suffic- 

 ient force through a fine nozzle. It is 

 more difficult to detect faulty work on the 

 part of the operator with oil than with 

 lime and sulphur, and for this reason, the 

 spraying should be delegated to trusty 

 men. With large apple trees, one man 

 should spray from the ground to cover 

 the lower parts of the branches and an- 

 other from a tower on a wagon to spray 

 the upper surfaces of the lower branches. 



If a rain should occur within twenty- 

 four hours after spraying, or before the 

 water in the emulsion has evaporated, a 

 second application may be necessary. 

 .\fter the water has evaporated, the oil 

 is unaffected by the rain and will remain 

 until it al.so has evaporated. 

 TIME TO SPRAY 



Like the limo-sulpluir wash, oil emul- 

 sion at regular strength must be applied 



