SPRAY MANAGEMENT 



29 



Cost of an additional spray 



One of the important decisions which orchardists face each year is 

 the application of additional sprays. For instance, an operator may plan 

 to apply his usual five sprays but conditions may arise in July that show 

 a need for another spray. He balances the result to be expected against 

 the cost of the additional spray. But what is the cost? There is no easy 

 blanket answer. Much depends on the other demands for labor and 

 power on individual farms and the amount of actual cash cost. 



MACHINE HOURS 



.030 



.02 5 



.020 



.015 



.010 



.005 



LARGE MEDIUM SMALL 



Figure 18. — Average calyx machine hours per bushel expected yield 

 used with large, medium, and small machines 



Since all operators apply the calyx spray to all trees and use approxi- 

 mately the same formulas with the same objective in view, the data con- 

 cerning this spray are taken as a basis for discussion of the application 

 of an additional spray. The distribution of the 40 farms according to 

 machine hours and man hours required for calyx application is shown 

 in Figures 18 and 19. The cost of the materials varied greatly on the 

 40 farms (Figure 20), but 1.2 cents for material for one spray per box 

 of apples is estimated as sufficient for one application. Based on these 

 data it is estimated that the orchard would be adequately covered by one 

 spray with the expenditure per box of apples approximately as follows: 



Estimated cost of machine 

 Estimated cost of man labor 

 Estimated cost of material 



2.7 cents 

 1.0 cents 

 1.2 cents 



4.9 cents 



However, under the usual orchard conditions, the chief out-of- 

 pocket cost of the additional spray may be the spray material. This 

 would depend on the situation in the individual orchard. From the 

 viewpoint of the cost of the additional spray, the available help and the 

 equipment tend to become fixed cost factors, especially on the family- 



