jveiv and old plants and methods. 



347 



and made root-growth as perfect as that of plants grow- 

 ing in soil of the same character containing no copper. 

 The supposition that this inert copper-salt will kill even 

 so delicate a thing as a fungus - spore, seems to lack 

 reasonable foundation, and we believe that applying car- 

 bonate of copper in suspension means nothing else but 

 throwing away work and money. 



The idea that the application of copper mix- 

 tures in the quantities used for fungicidal 

 purposes might poison the soil, seems to us 

 simply ridiculous. We have seen that copper 

 in the form of carbonate has no such ill effect. 

 If dissolved in ammonia and applied to the 

 soil in large doses, we would be more likely 

 to see this alleged soil-poisoning. In one of 

 our tests we planted various seeds in soil 

 treated the day before to a reasonably free 

 application of ammonia-water. None of these 

 seeds sprouted, and even now, weeks after- 

 wards, the soil seems to be perfectly dead. 

 Yet ammonia when applied in such minute 

 quantities as are used in spraying with the 

 ammoniacal solution of copper carbonate, 

 would act only as a stimulant, and beneficially 

 rather than otherwise. Neither scientific nor 

 practical people have yet solved the ques- 

 tion as to 



which of the !. 

 several \ A 



agents em- 

 ployed really 

 kills the fun- ^ 

 gus-spores. 

 For the pres- 

 ent season we 

 can do no bet- 

 ter than to 

 make our 

 fungicidal 

 preparati o n s 

 according t o 

 formulas that 

 have proved 

 most b e n e - 

 ficial in the 



past. The Bordeaux mixture and ammoniac 

 carbonate of copper (or coppc rdme) are those 

 most generally used and most trust\\orth\ 

 Nearly all other mixtures may be easily dis- 

 pensed with. 



We have no trouble in manufacturing our 

 own supply of copper carbonate, when we can- 

 not buy it. The ingredients can be bought in 

 any drug-store, and the recipe is simple. In a 

 half-barrel, or similar vessel, dissolve three pounds of 

 copper sulphate in two gallons of hot water. In another 

 vessel dissolve three and one-half pounds of common 

 washing-soda or sal-soda in one gallon of hot water. 

 When cool, pour the second solution slowly into the 



first ; then as soon as all action has ceased add enough 

 water to bring the whole up to eight or ten gallons, and 

 stir thoroughly. In 24 hours pour off the clear liquid, 

 taking care not to disturb the sediment. Add fresh 

 water to the sediment and stir again. Again allow the 

 solution to stand 24 hours and pour off the clear liquid 

 as before ; then remove the sedi- 

 ment, which is copper carbonate. 

 Prepared in this way pounds of 

 copper carbonate are formed at an 

 expense for materials of approxi- 

 mately 18 cents a pound, provided 

 you have bought your copper sul- 

 phate at a reasonable figure, say 7 

 cents a pound, and not at drug- 

 gist's retail prices, which may not 

 be less than 

 .'• i 5 cents a 



pound. The 

 copper - car- 

 bonate paste 

 be imme- 

 diately dis- 

 solved in two 

 or more gal- 

 lons of liquid 

 ammonia. 

 This concen- 

 trated fi u i d 

 should be 

 \ kept in well- 



-- y-^ corked jugs, 



and when 

 ready for use should be diluted 

 at the rate of one pint to 12 

 gallons of water. 



Muriate of Pot.\sh for 

 Aphis. — Our last season's 

 trials with solutions of potash 

 salts for plant-lice and various 

 and grubs were so sat- 

 isfactory and promising that 

 we must once more urge our 

 readers to experiment in the 

 same direction. Potash salts' 

 are not expensive, and w-ill 

 usually repay all their cost by 

 their fertilizing effects, for 

 they must, in the end, reach 

 the soil and plant-roots, no 

 matter how applied. We used 

 saturated solutions of muriate 

 of potash and kainit, and these, 

 when sprayed on infested foli- 

 age, soon cleaned them from plant-lice. Possibly weaker 

 solutions might suffice, and further experiments are in 

 order. These potash salts also seem to be quite an 

 effective remedy for grubs and maggots in the soil. For 

 cabbages, onions, etc., we need not hesitate to 



A Peren.n'i.al Gaillardi.a. 



radishe 



