SPRAYING FOR CITRUS INSECTS AND MITES IN FLORIDA. 



15 



and is not easily bent, hence the operator always knows just how to 

 turn the rod to direct the spray upward. The bamboo rods, however, 

 will not stand such rough usage as those made of gas pipe, and for 

 this reason many growers have stopped using these light rods. An 

 old piece of rubber hose may be slipped over the end which is 

 attached to the hose, so that the operator may handle tne rod with 

 greater facility. Rods of gas piping should be kept straight and 

 they should never exceed 10 feet in length. Owing to the more 

 thorough work that can be done with the light bamboo rods, and 

 the greater ease with which they may be handled, they should 

 be used whenever 

 practicable. With 

 care they often last 

 for years. 



CUT-OFFS. 



There should be 

 a cut-off between 

 each line of hose 

 and the machine, so 

 that if only one 

 line of hose is re- 

 quired, or if an ac- 

 cident temporarily 

 incapaci tates one 

 lead, the other lead 

 or leads can be used. 

 There should be an additional cut-off between each extension 

 rod and the hose, so that the operator can prevent any undue waste 

 of spray material, either in going from row to row or from tree 

 to tree. A cut-off placed in this position will enable the operator 

 to clean out any impediment in the nozzle without going back to the 

 machine to cut off the liquid. A cut-off should always be kept in 

 good repair, for if it does not cut off the spray completely, it is use- 

 less, and should be discarded or repaired immediately. 



NOZZLES. 



In spraying citrus trees the object is to obtain as wide a field as 

 practicable so that the greatest amount of leaf surface can be sprayed 

 in the shortest time. Penetration is not so important in spraying 

 for the pests on citrus. An angle nozzle, from which the spray 

 emerges in the form of a cone, at an angle of from 45 to 60, is 

 the best to obtain this result. It is also much better if two of these 

 nozzles are placed on a Y so that the cones of spray intersect at 

 from 8 inches to 12 inches from the nozzle. When so arranged the 



FIG. 15. The geared spraying machine above is not suit- 

 able for spraying Florida citrus trees. 



