54 



THE CANADIAN HORTICULTURIST 



March, 191 1 



Birdufc View of a ScTcnly-fiTc Acre Orchard 



This fruit farm is the property of Mr. W. H. Gibson, Newcastle, Ont. 



for description. 



See preceding article 



The application for the codling moth 

 should be thoroughly applied, using 

 plenty of force to drive the spray well 

 into the calyx of the blossoms. These 

 three sprayings will control ninety-eight 

 per cent, of the worms, as well as the 



apple scab. If any sign of fungus is 

 seen or hot muggy weather comes on, I 

 would give another application of either 

 lime-sulphur or Bordeaux two weeks 

 later. 



Select and buy your seeds early. 



Notes on Spraying for Results and Profit 



W. H. Bunting, St. 



FOR many years I have been a believ- 

 er in the necessity of spraying in our 

 fruit orchards and vineyards. The 

 process of spraying has, however, been a 

 gradual evolution, and thus it has been 

 only in recent years that even the more 

 experienced advocates of spraying have 

 been able to satisfy themselves as to 

 methods and mixtures, and there is still 

 a great deal to learn in order that best 

 results may be secured. 



My first efforts were directed towards 

 controlling the black rot of the grape. 

 This disease, which on sandy soils in 

 Pennsylvania and Ohio had wrought 

 great havoc, had gained a foothold in 

 .some vineyards in the Niagara district 

 in the nineties, more particularly where 

 the soil was of a light or sandy charac- 

 ter. For several years, although the 

 Bordeaux mixture was used, results 

 were more or less unsatisfactory. This 

 was largely because the efforts were not 

 so much directed towards preventive 

 measures as to effect a cure after the in- 

 jury was manifest. This was very much 

 like locking the barn door after the 

 horse was stolen. About the year igoo 

 it became evident that earnest efforts 

 mi'st be made to control this disease in 

 our vineyards, else it would be necessary 

 to devote the ground to some other kind 



Catharines, Ont. 



of a crop, as large quantities of grapes 

 of such varieties as the Rogers, the Nia- 

 gara, the Brighton, and even the more 

 resistant Concord were being entirely 

 destroyed and rendered unfit for sale. 

 Various spraying outfits had been em- 

 ployed. These were more or less effi- 

 cient, but all of them lacked in one or 

 more essential details, causing loss of 

 time and considerable annoyance owing 

 to their liability to get out of order at 

 a critical time. In consequence the 

 work was imperfectly or hastily per- 

 formed. 



About this time also the San Jose 

 .Scale had made such inroads in many 

 portions of the district that it had be- 

 come a serious question as to whether 

 fruit P'rowing as a commercial activity 

 was likely to survive. This pest attack- 

 ed nearly all kinds of fruit trees and 

 multiplied with tremendous rapidity. 

 Our knowledge of suitable and effective 

 remedies was very meagre. 



Thanks to the experiments and re- 

 searches of our experts and professors, 

 both in Canada and across the line to the 

 South — so many of whom have been 

 successfully engaged in this work thai 

 mention of a few names might be invid- 

 ious — we have obtained an effective spray 

 mixture. This is a compound of lime 



and sulphur. It has proved itself so 

 valuable that it bids fair, in combinatii 

 with arsenate of lead, to be a specific !■ 

 nearly all the ills that the fruit industry 

 is heir to, and they^are many and varied. 



For the past few years we have bcfn 

 engaged in a campaign which has h.i<i 

 for its object the control and reduction 

 to a minimum of the pests to which 1 

 have referred, including also the cindlinj.; 

 moth, apple scab, peach curl, and other 

 fungus diseases. With this end in view 

 we have established a steam plant for the 

 economical preparation of our own home 

 made lime and sulphur mixture. We 

 have also .secured a power spraying out- 

 fit of large capacity by one of the most 

 reliable makers. We now feel that \ 

 are fairly masters of the situation. 



The past season has fully demonstrat- 

 ed that a careful spraying in the dormant 

 season with a strong solution of lime 

 ;md sulphur will keep the San Jose Scale 

 in such subjection, that if looked after 

 each year it need cause no further anxi- 

 ety. This same spraying has also been 

 found a specific for peach curl, and will 

 greatly assist the operator in his subse- 

 quent work of controlling fungus dis- 

 eases. 



For the apple orchard we followed this 

 up with a spray of dilute lime and sul- 

 phur or Bordeaux, with an addition of 

 ten pounds arsenate of lead to two hun- 

 dred gallons of the mixture immediately 

 the petals began to fall from the blos- 

 som. This was followed by a subsequent 

 spray about July ist. The result was a 

 beautiful crop of apples of excellent color 

 and quality, which were the admiration 

 of all who saw them, and which com- 

 manded excellent prices wherever offered 

 for sale. 



In the vineyards we spray early. The 

 first spray is given with the Bordeaux 

 mixture, about 3-4-40, before the bloom 

 opens. We give four sprayings at in- 

 tervals of ten days or two weel-'s. The 

 result last year was a crop of almost 

 perfect grapes of all varieties. 



Peaches up to the present have had 

 the spraying only in the dormant season, 

 but observations this year have brought 

 us to the conclusion that to ward off the 

 effects of damp and unfavorable weather 

 conditions in the ripening season a 

 thorough spraying with the dilute lime 

 and sulphur when peaches are about half 

 grown may prove time well spent. 



I cannot too strongly urge that no 

 pains be spared in an effort to spray thor- 

 oughly and well. A man may do all the 

 other work in connection with an orchard 

 in the way of pruning, cultivating and 

 fertilizing, none of which should be neg- 

 lected, and if he falls down with his 

 spraying he will come far short of realiz- 

 ing the satisfaction and profit which 

 comes from a complete rounding out of 

 the work outlined. 



