igi I 



BETTER FRUIT 



Page 21 



Photograph by C. C. Hutchins 



MISS EDNA CAMERON 

 Publicity Secretary and Manager White Salmon 

 Development League 

 White Salmon, Washington 



lead used showed a variation about as 

 follows: In barrels of about 400 pounds, 

 9 to 15 cents per pound; in 100-pound 

 kegs, 9yi to 16 cents per pound; in 5 to 

 20-pound buckets, 11 to 20 cents per 

 pound, and in single pound cans, from 

 20 to 25 cents. 



Although the quality of arsenate of 

 lead upon the market in Missouri is upon 

 the whole of a high standard, it will be 

 advisable for purchasers, until a national 

 or states law has been enacted fixing a 

 standard of purity, to demand a certifi- 

 cate of analysis from the manufacturer 

 covering each package, guaranteeing a 

 quality of product at least up to the 

 standard for arsenate of lead as noted 

 elsewhere. 



The convenience attending the use of 

 arsenate of lead, the fineness of its par- 

 ticles, giving it great adhesiveness, in 

 spite of washing rains, and its power 

 of suspension in the spray tank, thus 

 insuring an easier and more uniform 

 distribution of poison over the sprayed 

 surface, commend its use to fruit grow- 

 ers. From the insolubility of its arsenic, 

 when carefully made, it is safe to use in 

 large quantities and by inexperienced 

 persons, without danger of burning the 

 fruit or leaves. Considering its effective- 

 ness, together with the other advantages 

 in its favor already cited, it is as cheap, 

 if not cheaper, insecticide than paris 

 green, with which it is further com- 

 pared later on in this bulletin. 



Instead of purchasing the ready-made 

 commercial brands of lead arsenate some 

 fruit growers prefer to make up their 

 own insecticide, which may be easily 

 done. Home-made arsenate of lead was 

 prepared and used by the writer in com- 

 parison with different brands of com- 

 mercial arsenate of lead mentioned with 



practically as successful results as was 

 secured with the best of the commercial 

 arsenates, and with no attendant damage 

 from burning. The following formula 

 and method of preparation was used, 

 and is recommended: Lead acetate 

 (sugar of lead), 25 ounces; sodnmi arsen- 

 ate, 10 ounces; water, 50 gallons. 



The above amounts of lead acetate and 

 sodium arsenate are first dissolved each 

 in a gallon of water contained in sep- 

 arate wooden vessels. When dissolved, 

 pour one solution after the other into 

 the spray barrel with 48 gallons of 

 water, thus making 50 gallons of spray. 

 For a 200-gallon tank use four times the 

 above amounts. Hot water dissolves the 

 materials more rapidly. Upon pouring 

 the two solutions together in the spray 

 tank a very fine, white precipitate of 

 arsenate of lead is immediately formed, 

 which keeps in suspension well while 

 being sprayed. 



The home-made arsenate of lead has 

 the advantage over the commerical prod- 

 uct in that if the two chemicals used 

 in making up the spray are pure the 

 resulting lead arsenate will be of known 

 composition. Acetate of lead (grade 

 known as brown-broken) may be had 

 for about nine cents per pound, and 

 arsenate of soda (commercial) for about 

 14 cents per pound, at which prices 200 

 gallons of spray would cost about T6 

 cents. Two hundred gallons of spray 

 made up with eight pounds of a com- 

 mercial lead arsenate at 12 cents per 

 pound would cost 96 cents. The amount 

 saved by the use of the home-made prod- 

 uct is not appreciable when the added 

 cost of trouble of dissolving the chem- 

 icals and mixing the solution is taken 

 into account. In the home-made product 

 acetate of soda and acetic acid are left 

 in solution and sprayed upon the trees, 

 although they are not properties yet 

 known to have any particular insecti- 

 cidal value in this connection. Their 

 extraction would not be practicable for 

 the farmer. 



There are many fruit growers who still 

 adhere to paris green, and who, it may 

 be said, are securing results satisfactory 

 to them. The superiority of arsenate of 

 lead over paris green is now recognized. 



however, in most states where these 

 arsenicals have been compared. This 

 difference for the purpose of codling 

 moth and curculio spraying was con- 

 clusively brought out in the past sea- 

 son's experiments, where two blocks of 

 trees of about equal size were given 

 sprayings practically identical in every 

 respect, except that in one paris green 

 was used and in the other a good brand 

 of commercial arsenate of lead. Detailed 

 records were made upon the various 

 kinds of insect injuries in these two plats, 

 and are shown in Table X. 



In the picked fruit sprayed with arsen- 

 ate of lead, 3.8% bore either curculio 

 crescents or codling moth worm holes, 

 while 7.67% bore these injuries in the 

 plat sprayed with paris green. Including 

 both windfalls and picked fruit, 96.18% 

 in the arsenate of lead plat and 93% in 

 the paris green plat were free from these 

 injuries. This difference, though prac- 

 tically only 3%, in cases of heavy yield 

 of high priced fruit, would justify the use 

 of the lead, though the cost of the paris 

 green might be slightly less. IMany fruit 

 growers have continued to use paris 

 green on account of its cheapness. In 

 consideration of the raise in the price of 

 paris green in recent years, the reduction 

 in the price of commercial arsenate of 

 lead and the knowledge that arsenate of 

 lead can be used at very much weaker 

 strengths than formerly recommended, 

 the arsenate of lead is but little, if any, 

 more expensive than paris green. If 

 the arsenate of lead had been no more 

 effective than the paris green it would 

 have been preferable on account of the 

 serious burning of the apples at their 

 blossom ends by the paris green. 



This burning seriously damaged 22.46% 

 of the picked apples which had been 

 sprayed with paris green, as referred to 

 under the following subject. 



The burning effect of paris green upon 

 foliage and fruit was well exemplified in 

 the plat sprayed with it in 1908. Every 

 known precaution was taken to avoid 

 injury. The paris green was purchased 

 from a reliable firm and was guaranteed 

 to be of highest quality. At the first 

 spraying it was used six ounces to 50 

 gallons, in connection with bordeaux 



BLACKBERRY FIELD OF A. F. STREBLOWS IN BLOOM, SUMNER, W ASHINGTON 



