9 



users during the past season, a general return to the slower but 

 more efficient pole and nozzle equipment is setting in. There 

 is no question that under certain conditions, for certain pur- 

 poses, and in the hands of competent operators the gun has 

 proved a rapid and efficient spraying weapon. But for general 

 orchard spraying and in the hands of the unskilled labor at 

 present available for the work, it is less satisfactory than the 

 best angle nozzle at the end of a 10 to 14 foot pole. Had the 

 tower and double lead of hose been retained, the advent of 

 the spray gun would undoubtedly have proved much less of 

 a disappointment. 



Timely Application. 

 Probably no feature of successful spraying is less undeTstood 

 and appreciated by the average grower than timeliness of appli- 

 cation. In spite of accumulating evidence and the persistent 

 teaching of plant pathologists during the past ten years, grow- 

 ers have failed to fully appreciate or have not understood the 

 absolute necessity of getting the spray mixtures on at just the 

 right time. This factor more than any other conditions success 

 or failure of spraying operations. "Spray just before the rains, 

 not after" has been shouted at you from platform and printed 

 page. The deeply rooted notion that rains will w^ash off the 

 fungicide or poison has been completely disproved and ex- 

 ploded. It has been repeatedly shown that for any given suc- 

 cessful application usually not to exceed two or three days 

 are available. Yet in spite of the fact that every intelligent 

 grower knows that not more than 4 acres of full-grown apple 

 trees on the average can be properly sprayed in a day, almost 

 none of you have a sufficient number of spray rigs available to 

 cover your plantings in the period available for successful 

 operation. There are still many growers who spray when most 

 convenient, thereby often missing the most effective time for 

 doing the work. A not inconsiderable number try to beat the 

 game by spraying almost continuously throughout the season 

 with the result that they waste most of their time, labor and 

 materials. A few growers have begun to appreciate the abso- 

 lute necessity for timeliness in application and have sought to 

 meet the situation by doubling or trebling their equipment. 



