Frost Injuries and Protection, Secondary Bloom 343 



ers it must be said that the oil burners are by far the most 

 practical. The fuel is less bulky to handle, oil heaters 

 can be handled with less help, and as the oil heaters may 

 be extinguished at any time, the fuel may be used more 

 economically. It will require one man to care for each 

 two and one-half acres equipped with coal burners, 

 while one man will tend five acres equipped with good oil 

 burners. It is often almost impossible to secure the help 

 required to take care of a large orchard equipped with coal 

 burners. Five-acre orchards are easily protected with 

 these coal burners. There are times when it may be neces- 

 sary to maintain fires for only an hour, and it is a great 

 waste of fuel to start a coal pot for such a short period of 

 burning, for a coal burner once started may as well be 

 allowed to burn out. Even though some coal may be 

 saved by turning the pot over, it makes very poor fires after 

 it is partially burned. There are also many cases in which 

 the coal fires are started unnecessarily, for they are started 

 before the danger point is really reached and known. 

 A few minutes' waiting may have shown a change for the 

 better, and the man who is burning oil can wait until the 

 danger point is practically reached. The first cost of 

 equipping the orchard with oil burners and storage tanks 

 will probably be greater than the cost of coal equipment. 

 While it is true that coal may be used for other purposes 

 if not needed for protecting the orchard, the average 

 grower cannot in one season dispose of the amount he 

 must necessarily store for orchard-heating purposes. If 

 oil is properly stored, there is probably less chance of 

 loss by deterioration. Coal will slack if stored even from 

 one year to another and will in time become undesirable 



