spraying Pointers from Practical Sprayers 



THK practical value of sprayinji; becomes 

 more and more evident as the seasons go 

 l)y. Insects and fungi arc becoming more 

 numerous and are constantly clumping 

 their habits from one class of plants to another. 

 Man is constantly enlarging the number of these 

 foes by increasing the area of cultivated plants 

 upon which they feed. Competition itself, which 

 is the life of the fruit trade as well as all other 

 branches of commerce, forces fruit growers to 

 reaUze the necessity of spraying by elevating 

 both the ideals of the growers and the demands of 

 the market. 



Government aid and legislation also have done 

 much to encourage the practice of spraying, 

 while there are some insurmountable difficulties 

 in the enforcement of pest laws; yet, their value 

 to the fruit industry of this country has been 

 and is nmch greater than most people realize. 

 Our pest laws have helped to keep out of the 

 country many serious plant and tree troubles; 

 they liave demonstrated to the practical grower 

 the practical value of spraying in holding within 

 bounds the San Jose Scale and other pests now 

 in the country; and also they have materially 

 controlled the distribution of plant diseases and 

 fungi that are more or less permanent or per- 

 ennial, such as peach yellows and the black knot 

 of the plum and cherry. 



SODA BORDEAUX AND PARIS GREEN 



In the Niagara district last year some growers 

 suffered loss through the application of soda 

 Bordeaux and Paris green to fruit trees, particu- 

 larly in the case of cherries. Some time ago Pro- 

 fessor Shutt, of Ottawa, and Professor Lochhead, 

 of Guelph, recommended the use of this mixture 

 on potatoes; they did not recommend its use on 

 fruit trees. Many practical growers used it on 

 their cherry and other trees — which they were 

 free to do if they wished — and as a result con- 

 siderable damage was done. Now, some of 

 these growers are throwing the blame on the 

 officials at Ottawa and Guelph. At the fruit 

 growers' convention held in Toronto last Novem- 

 ber, Professor Shutt explained the cause of the 

 damage as follows: When the compound that 

 makes up soda Bordeaux comes in contact with 

 the compound Paris green, the soda of the soda 

 Bordeaux enters chemically into combination 

 with the arsenic of the Paris green and forms a 

 new compound known as arsenite of soda, which 

 is known to be harmless when applied to the 

 potato plant, but very injurious to fruit trees. 



THE CARE OF NOZZLE AND OUTFIT 



Mr. W. H. Brand, Jordan Station, Ont., who 

 has had many years' experience with various 

 makes of spray pumps, gave the writer some 

 general information in the following words: 

 "From many people we hear a howl about the 

 difficulty in starting up their spraying outfits after 

 they have been idle for a period. A great deal 

 of this could very easily be avoided if sprayer 

 operators would spend about five or ten minutes 

 in washing out by running perfectly clean water 

 through the machine pipings, valves, etc., and 

 by taking off the nozzle heads entirely and plac- 

 ing them in a bucket of clean water, there to 

 remain until wanted again. Being of either 

 brass or aluminum they will not rust. Spraying 

 outfits would be longer lived if accorded better 

 care and better winter and summer housing." 



STRAIN THE MIXTURE THOROUGHLY 



"A large number of sprayer operators are 

 astray in their preparation of mixtures, contain- 

 ing lime, sulphur, or other such ingredients from 

 which a sediment forms or in which may be at 

 the outset coarse particles. All such mixtures 

 should be run through three screens, viz., first 

 a 20-mesh, next a 30-mesh, and finish through a 

 40-raesh, (a 50-mesh would be still better). 



This removes particles which are not of the 

 slightest value but which prevent free flowing 

 through very fine nozzles, which are best for 

 finest atomizing. Spraying with the air current or 

 wind saves from j to J of the mixture and 



means money. ■ Free flowing means less lime 

 spent in stops to clean out cloggetl nozzles ;iiid 

 waste of material while so doing." 



AN EXPERIMENT WITH SCALECIDE 

 Early in December last Mr. W. H Bunting, 

 ofSt.Catharines, madeanapi)licationof Scalecide, 

 in the proi«irtionof two gallons to forty gallons of 

 water, to plum, pear and peach trees badly 

 encrusted with scale. On February 20 he 

 examined the trees in company with your repre- 

 sentative, and compared them with unsprayed 

 trees in adjoining rows, and found no apparent 

 injury to the trees from the application of the 

 Scalecide. After a careful examination under the 

 glass, he came to the conclusion that while not all 

 have been killed a very large percentage of the 

 scale has been destroyed, Mr. Bunting has 

 forwarded samples of sprayed twigs to Professor 

 Lochhead of Guelph, and to Dr. Fletcher of 

 Ottawa, for further examination. At a later 

 date we hope to pubUsh further details. 



Scalecide was tried this winter also by Mr. F. 

 G. Stewart, Homer, who cites his experiences as 

 follows: "About the middle qf January I 

 apphed this mixture in the proportion of one 

 gallon to 20 gallons of water, using about one 

 •allon to a tree. I examined the trees early in 

 Feb., and found that the scales were loosened 

 and could easily be rubbed off the bark with the 

 fingers. I think that most, if not all, of the scales 

 have been killed. If further examination 

 confirms present results, I shall use Scalecide in 

 my orchards in future instead of lime and 

 sulphur." 



"y-^ SULPHUR FOR PLUM ROT V- 



Mr. Murray Pettit, Winona, said that plum rot 

 can be controlled by dry sulphur dusted through 

 the trees. Two applications should be made; 

 first, when plums are just formed; and second, 

 two weeks later. Mr. Pettit has tested the sul- 

 phur treatment on rows side by side with trees 

 treated ^¥ith Bordeaux mixture, and found the 

 former to be the better. 



IS SPRAYING NECESSARY? 



In interviewing fruit growers I occasionally 

 find a man who objects to spraying. Some have 

 never given the operation a trial, and others have 

 tried it and obtained no results. Both these 

 classes of growers should bear in mind this fact — 

 healthy foliage in fruit trees is necessary one 

 year for the cro]) the following season. If a 

 grower has an orchard with fohage that is vigor- 

 ous and free from all kinds of tree troubles it 

 may be a waste of time and expense to spray — 

 but the grower cannot always be sure that his 

 trees are immune, even in the face of good ap- 

 pearance. In the other case, good results from 

 spraying may not be evident the first year, par- 

 ticularly when badly infected orchards are treated 

 the first time. Spraying should be done regu- 

 larly each year. 



The opinion of Mr. W. E. Gorman, Stoney 

 Creek, is this: "There is more in keeping the trees 

 healthy by treating the ground with desirable 

 food and good tillage than in doctoring the tree 

 after it is diseased." Mr. A. O. Bowslaugh, 

 Grimsby, is another grower with the same opin- 

 ion; also Mr. J. W. Nash, Stoney Creek. This 

 theory of making trees resistant is good as far 

 as it goes, but practical experience and experi- 

 ment has not proved it infallible. A case can be 

 cited, at Jordan Harbor, where some apple 

 orchards non-sprayed but othervrise well cared 

 for, yielded less than 25 per cent. XXX stock; 

 while in the same locahty sprayed orchards 

 yielded a much larger average, notably the 

 orchard of Mr. W.S. Duncan, which last season 

 yielded 12 XXX barrels for every one of XX 

 stock. 



THE CARLSON MIXTURE 



A spray mixture for the San Jose Scale that is 

 commanding considerable attention in the St. 

 Catharines district is one originated by Mr. John 

 Carlson. Many growers have tested it and all 



TO 



whom I visited were well pleased with the result 

 " I have used many spray mixtures including tin- 

 lime and suli)hur wash, and Carlson's, and with 

 rne the latter has given l)est results," said Mr. 

 H. B. Kottmeir, St. Catharines "I^st spring 

 I applied Carlson's mixture to a plum orcliard 

 so badly infected that I was alx>ut to cut the 

 trees down, and now the trees are clean and 

 healthy. I appHed the regular strength, 4 

 gallons to 40 gallons of water, on trees seven 

 years old and the cost of labor, material and all 

 amounted to only five cents a tree — on calm 

 days it cost less. The beauty of this mixture 

 is its cleanliness on operator, horse and appar- 

 atus. " 



This mixture was used last spring also by Mr. 

 Archibald, who is working a fann for Mr. Edward 

 McArdle, St. Catharines. In the same orchard 

 he used Hrae and sulphur and Carlson's mixture 

 and found that fruit from trees treated with the 

 latter was the better in quality and appearance — 

 jjears brought 10 cents a basket more than those 

 from trees sprayed with lime and sulphur. "On 

 some trees," he said, "I used the mixture where 

 pears and plums were half grown and infected 

 with scale and it cleaned the fruit for market. 

 Carlson's mixture can be used when trees are in 

 leaf, if diluted one half; that is, two gallons to 

 40 gallons of water." 



THe New Method of Killing' 

 San Jose Scale 



It has long been known that petroleum oils 

 would kill San Jose Scale if they could be mixed 

 with water so as to be conveniently applied. 

 That Scalecide is such a practical triumph is 

 shown by letters from growers and by references 

 in bulletins, etc. It is a perfect mixture of oils 

 that effectively penetrates the scale, causing it 

 to curl up and die, and fall off. This new prepar- 

 ation is said to supplant the lime-sulphur wash 

 with its bothersome preparation, boiUng of 

 ingredients and danger of serious injury to the 

 clothes and hands. 



Prof. R. L. Taft, Horticulturist Michigan 

 Agricultural Experiment Station, wrote of Scale- 

 cide, "I find that the results of the winter apph- 

 cation has been quite satisfactory as, judging 

 from the results on peach trees, considerably 

 less than one per cent, of the adult scales escaped 

 treatment." 



Prof. John B. Smith, Entomologist New 

 Jersey Agricultural Experiment Station, New 

 Brunswick, N.J., wrote: "I beheve that apphed 

 at the right time and in a thorough manner, 

 this is as good, if not a better remedy for this 

 pernicious insect than any we have up to the 

 present time." 



For further testimonials from fruit growers and 

 experiment stations, and for samples, address, 

 -B. G. Pratt, Company 11 Broadway, New York. 



Horticultvire in tKe "West 



THAT horticulture is increasing in the west 

 as the population grows was shown by 

 the interest taken in the sessions at the 

 annual meeting of the Western Horticultural 

 Society, held in Winnipeg, on Feb. 14 and 15. 

 Horticultural subjects were ably dealt with, 

 and the vast importance of forestry dwelt on. 

 It was decided to hold an horticultural exhibi- 

 tion in W^innipeg this year in August or Sep- 

 tember. A resolution was passed asking for 

 the establishment of experimental stations in 

 horticulture throughout the country in connec- 

 tion with the Dominion Experimental farms. 

 Other resolutions asked the western provincial 

 Governments to endeavor to check the preval- 

 ence of prairie fires, which are very destructive 

 to timber areas within the prairie region and en- 

 dorsed the recent forestry convention at Ottawa. 

 The election of officers resulted as follows: — 

 Pres., W. G. Scott; 1st vice-pres., A. P. Steven- 

 son; 2nd vice-pres., John Caldwell; secretary, 

 Geo. Batho. 



