1905. 
THE RURAL NEW-YORKER. 
5o3 
PUBLIC SPRAYING IN CANADA. 
This matter was taken up by the Dominion Depart¬ 
ment of Agriculture some three years ago. In the 
Spring of 1903 a gasoline sprayer outfit was placed 
in operation between Woodstock and Ingersoll, in the 
central part of this province. About 2,500 average 
sized apple trees were secured for the work along a 
route of about 10 miles. Orchards in this section had 
in the past been, with a few exceptions, almost entirely 
neglected. The Department made a contract with the 
farmers to spray these trees a certain number of times 
during the season at the discretion of the persons in 
charge of the work. The farmers were in turn to pay 
back to the Department the sum of five cents per tree 
per spraying. About 20 orchards were accepted in the 
section mentioned, the orchards being of all sizes and 
descriptions, so that the work was done under various 
conditions. It was found at the end of the season that 
the average cost per tree for each spraying was 
rather over four cents. Of course, under more suitable 
conditions, and probably with more experienced men, 
this might have been reduced. 
The results at Ingersoll more than justified the cost 
of the experiment. The section around which this 
machine was operated apples were practically worthless, 
many thousands of apples going to waste on the 
ground; then on the route sprayed under these con¬ 
ditions these were sold at good prices. Last year the 
work was extended to the Provinces of Quebec and 
Nova Scotia. This year the Provincial Government 
has undertaken the operation of two power machines 
at Meaford and Trenton respectively. These places 
are situated in two of our best apple-growing coun¬ 
ties, with an output during 1904 of over two million 
bushels each. The Government is naturally anxious to 
encourage any methods which will tend to improve the 
quality of the fruit sent out, and is hoping that the 
operation of these sprayers this year will be carried on 
in the coming season by other private persons or 
through the local fruit growers’ associations. Already, 
owing to the operation of these power machines, a 
number of sprayers are at work throughout Ontario 
outside of those operated by the Department. 
Two types of machines arc at present in use. One, 
the Spramotor spraying outfit, is composed of 150 or 
200-gallon tank, double gas pump operated by 2 J /2 or 
three horse-power gasoline engine. This outfit has in 
most cases a tower, two lines of hose and 12 to 18 
nozzles. In most orchards two men are required for 
handling the nozzles, with either a man or boy to 
drive the team. The other type of machine is what 
is known as the Niagara gas spraying outfit. This 
is much simpler than the former machine, but costs con¬ 
siderably more for the gas used in operating it. It 
consists of a gaslight tank containing the spraying 
mixture, to which is connected the small tank contain¬ 
ing the carbonic acid gas under high pressure. By 
opening a valve in the latter enough gas is allowed in 
the back chamber to raise the pressure to the required 
extent as indicated by the gauge. A powerful agitator 
is furnished with both machines. 
In regard to the number of trees which can 
be handled by one of these machines, it will 
depend, of course, on the size of the trees and 
the condition of the orchard. At Meaford this 
year we sprayed about 2,500, most of them of 
average size. At Trenton there were a num¬ 
ber of orchards of about nine or ten years of 
age and we handled a good many more. We 
have contracted with the farmers in this sec¬ 
tion to spray the trees at a cost not to exceed 
five cents per spraying. In some cases it will, 
I think, considerably exceed this amount, due 
largely to the closeness of the trees. Many of 
the orchards planted out years ago were 
about 20 feet apart and are almost impassa¬ 
ble. The Department is, of course, endeavor¬ 
ing simply to instruct the growers in each 
locality in the use of the power machines. It 
would seem as if a greater amount will have to be 
charged per spraying by the men in this business on 
a financial basis. One of the Associations is running 
its own machine, and charges members in proportion to 
the size of the trees and the bare cost of materials 
and labor. It has more than paid for the machine in 
the quality of the fruit which it handled last year. 
This is in a scale-infested section, too. In most of 
the sections of which I am speaking we have been 
fighting only the leaf-eating insects and scab, and us¬ 
ing the poisoned Bordeaux Mixture. 
Ontario Dept, of Agriculture. p. w. hodgetts. 
INVESTIGATION OF IRON AND STEEL. 
It is perhaps too soon to speak very definitely of 
the results of the investigation we are making into the 
lasting qualities of iron and steel, as used for fenc¬ 
ing. It is, however, my individual belief that the 
trouble is mainly attributable to electrolytic action. 
This electrolytic action is probably caused by the 
manganese in the metal being unequally distributed. 
Probably the sulphur content also has something to 
to with the case. Thirty or forty years ago the Besse¬ 
mer pneumatic process of steel manufacture was not in 
general use, and the older metals were wrought or 
puddled by hand in open hearth furnaces. By this 
older method not only were any impurities that were 
present very evenly mixed with the metal, but also 
the working over of the metal in a pasty condition 
gave it the well-known fibrous structure of wrought 
iron. In the Bessemer process, as is very well known, 
the molten metal, after being blown with air, is fluxed 
at the very last moment before pouring with a man¬ 
ganese alloy known as ferromanganese. It could 
almost be expected that the manganese will never get 
perfectly even distribution throughout the mass of 
metal as long as this manipulation of the process is 
maintained. There is a considerable mass of evidence 
which we have collected, not only from our own ob¬ 
servations, but from the experience of many others, 
HUNT'S SEEDLING NO. 3. FIG. 212. 
that the trouble with modern steel wire, nails, etc., is 
due to the unequal distribution of manganese. Of 
course the fibrous structure of the older wrought iron 
is probably also an element in its favor as far as 
resistance to the oxidizing influences is concerned. 
Acting Chief, Division of Tests, a. s. cushman, 
HOW ALFALFA HUNTS WATER . 
Some one in Colorado or Utah took exception to 
my statement that "Alfalfa requires wet feet but a 
dry head." I send you picture (see Fig. 211) of ideal 
conditions for Alfalfa. Last Fall the high water cut 
awry that bank, leaving it perpendicular; there was 
a curtain of roots along the bank extending down to 
the water at that time. The picture was taken about 
the first of April. The bank, you will notice, has 
caved off and hides the lower ends of the roots. The 
water in the river is just at the lower edge of the 
picture. That bank and field varies from eight to 15 
feet above the water level. At the point where the 
picture was taken the top of the bank is 12 feet above 
the water. 
Our farms in this valley are all underlaid with a 
body of river water. The soil has been created over 
what was once the sandy bed of the river. The soil 
is composed of decayed vegetation and sediment washed 
from the hills. The natural conditions are as near 
perfect, I believe, as they can be for Alfalfa. I have 
not seen better crops anywhere than grow on what we 
call sub-irrigated land. Those roots run down to the 
water. I regret that I didn’t have a picture taken last 
Fall when the bank was perpendicular and the Alfalfa 
roots formed a curtain all along the bank, reaching 
clear down to the water, 12 feet. I didn’t think 
anyone \vould dispute the natural habit of Alfalfa, or I 
would have done so. It is true Alfalfa will not grow 
in water-soaked ground; that is, where the ground is 
filled with water from the surface down, but it will 
grow to perfection if the roots can go down from five 
to I don't know how many feet and get what water the 
plant requires. a. d. h. 
Norman, Okla.- 
POTASH; FERTILIZING YOUNG TREES. 
In an issue of The R. N.-Y. not long ago an inquirer 
asked about using nitrate of potash in mixing fertilizer. 
In the reply it was stated that the cost of fertilizer in¬ 
gredients in nitrate of potash was too great to war¬ 
rant the use of it. I had supposed it was so myself 
until last year I learned that the nitrate could be pur¬ 
chased in New York for $70 per ton, which would 
analyze 44 per cent potash and 10 per cent ammonia. 
It was too late when I learned the fact to get it for 
use last year, but this year 1 bought two tons of it, 
but I had to pay $75 per ton in New York, cost here 
$78. Even at that price it is the cheapest source for 
nitrogen and potash which I know. Nitrate of soda at 
$52.60, reground, which it costs me delivered here, 
makes ammonia cost 13.8 cents per pound. If we 
reckon the potash in nitrate of equal value with the 
potash in sulphate, high grade, just about five cents 
a pound, the potash in 100 pounds of nitrate of potash 
would be worth 44 X 5 = 2.20. The nitrate of potash 
costs me per 100 pounds $3.60. Deduct the value of the 
potash, $2.20, leaves the cost of 16 pounds of ammonia 
$1.40, or 8^4 cents per pound, or a little better than 
five cents less per pound than from nitrate of soda. 
Prof. Goessman assured me that the nitrate of potash 
from this source is of equal value with nitrogen and 
potash from nitrate of soda and high-grade sulphate of 
potash. 
In reading Hope Farm Notes the thought came to me 
that we learn as much, if not more, from failures than 
from successes; experimentally, 1 mean; but in acquir¬ 
ing knowledge from readings or lectures we do not 
usually have opportunity to learn from failures, as most 
experimenters dislike to tell of their mistakes. The 
guides for navigators are mostly warnings of danger; 
so in life if persons were more willing to warn others 
of their own mistakes perhap's there would be less 
wreckages. I am led to these reflections by looking 
over some of my work this Spring. I set some young 
peach and apple trees, but most of them will die. I 
knew better than to put manure about the roots when 
setting, but thought good rich loam would be a good 
thing. I had a quantity of what I called such, in which 
I had grown rhubarb in my barn cellar this past Win¬ 
ter. It was a mixture of horse manure with some hen 
droppings and loam, mostly loam. After setting the 
rhubarb roots, I sowed on about 50 pounds of nitrate of 
potash, which the free watering dissolved and carried 
into the compost. I think there were about four or 
five cords of the compost. The rhubarb did well, and 
I reasoned that the material was so decom¬ 
posed and reduced that it would be only good 
rich loam and well suited to use in setting 
trees. But, alas, I did not realize the differ¬ 
ence in ability to stand rich feed,- between 
rhubarb roots and the roots of young trees. 
Had there been plenty of rain the trouble 
might not have been serious, but we have not 
had sufficient rain since the trees were set to 
wet the dirt placed about their roots, and 
most of the trees will be a loss. I hope my 
experience may be a warning to others not to 
try to fertilize young trees at their roots 
when setting them. M. morse. 
Massachusetts. 
SPRAYING WITH COMPRESSED AIR 
During the past three years I have done 
considerable outside spraying. Nearly all 
this spraying has been dene in peach orchards 
>n a radius of one mile from my plant, and 
the lime and sulphur mixture has been used, ex¬ 
cepting some later spraying with the Bordeaux. 
[ have two compressed-air rigs, and have covered about 
150 acres of peach orchards during the early Spring. 
At the plant the mixtures are made, and also the tanks 
are charged with compressed air while being filled with 
the mixture. I have one man in the orchard who does 
all the spraying, and a boy to deliver the charged rigs 
to him and return the empty rig to the plant for re¬ 
charging. It requires about 30 minutes to blow out a 
tank full of mixture, 120 gallons. I furnish and make 
the mixture, and apply it to bearing trees at the rate of 
three cents per gallon. This is really cheaper than the 
average grower with the usual hand outfit can apply it, 
counting the cost of their labor. Most of the larger 
plants here are equipped with air compressors, and em¬ 
ploy thi's power instead of gasoline mixture and other 
power pumps. Several are co-operative plants, and fur¬ 
nish mixture and power for the members and some out¬ 
siders. The introduction of this advanced method of 
spraying has shorn the San Jose scale of its terrors, as 
well as fungus diseases. w. h. owen. 
