1886 



ENCYCLOPEDIA OF PRACTICAL HORTICULTURE 



In harmony with the evolution of spray- 

 ing, spraying machinery has "been passing 

 through a period of transition during the 

 last decade, and pumps used for different 

 kinds of spraying are rapidly becoming 

 special purpose machines, designed to 

 spray some certain crop or series of crops, 

 which are treated in a similar manner. 

 For example, this evolution has developed 

 a traction machine of large capacity 

 which will furnish liquids at high pres- 

 sures to do grape, field and potato spray- 

 ing thoroughly with a minimum of ex- 

 pense of lal)or and material. This is usu- 

 ally a two-wheeled, traction-power type 

 of machine, in which the power is trans- 

 mitted from the wheels by gears, chains, 

 eccentrics, or cams, and the horse does 

 the work instead of a man at the end of 

 a pump handle. 



Sometimes a man has made the ac- 

 quaintance of some particular make of 

 machine and knows its little faults so 

 well that it may be better for him to re- 

 tain this machine rather than purchase 

 some simpler, less troublesome type of 

 pump. On the other hand, in the pres- 

 ent period of evolution in spraying ma- 

 chinery, it will often pay a man well to 

 discard his old favorite for some more 

 modern, more efficient type of machine 

 which is better suited to his special line 

 of work and better adapted to the par- 

 ticular conditions existing in his locality. 



Factors to Ibe Considered in Choosing a 

 Spray Pump 



Capacity, which involves: size, weight. 



Simplicity, which involves: accessibil- 

 ity of part, ease of repair. 



Durability, depending upon: quality of 

 material, kind of material, workmanship, 

 correct mechanical principles and designs, 

 strength, weight. 



Cost, determined })y: capacity of pump, 

 type of pump, amount of labor involved 

 in manufacturing, material used, quality 

 of material. 



Capacity 



A p«mp of larger ^pacity than is act- 

 ually needed will always prove more sat- 

 isfactory than one which falls short of 

 the demands made upon it. As trees and 



orchards increase in size, the import- 

 ance of having a machine which will en- 

 able the fruit growers to cover a consid- 

 erable area quite rapidly becomes ap- 

 parent. The grower must either pur- 

 chase a new machine of larger capacity or 

 look ahead at the outset, and provide for 

 the future. Four acres of good bearing 

 orchard is worthy of a power sprayer if 

 the best results are desired, and nothing 

 of smaller capacity than a large hand 

 pump should be considered. A larger or 

 smaller orchard will require a pump pro- 

 portionately larger or smaller, but there 

 is a limit for even the larger machines, 

 and twenty acres of large trees is about 

 all one large power sprayer was ever de- 

 signed to spray. 



Simplicity 



Spray pumps should be as simple as 

 possible, with a minimum of parts which 

 ordinarily require attention. These parts 

 should be easily replaced when worn, and 

 should not be expensive when replace- 

 ment becomes necessary. The ideal sought 

 demands ease of repair, a minimum of 

 parts, and these readily accessible, when 

 worn, or not working properly. Leaky 

 packing, clogged valves, worn-out valves, 

 valve seats, cylinder liners, and plunger 

 packings or cups must all be considered 

 before choosing a pump that will fulfill 

 its mission and serve the purpose for 

 which it was purchased. 



Durability 



On the quality and kind of material, 

 the excellence of the workmanship, to- 

 gether with weight and strength depends 

 the durability or lasting qualities of the 

 machine. G-ood design is also an im- 

 portant factor. Cheapness quite often 

 means that inferior material has been 

 used, and that inefficient or negligent 

 laborers, who slight their work by acci- 

 dent or design, have been employed in the 

 pump's manufacture. 



Designers and builders of pumps often 

 seem unwilling to adopt new ideas or 

 better designs, and continue to build the 

 same type of machine that they did ten 

 or twelve years ago. Such machines will 

 squirt liquid after a fashion but they do 



