502 
THE NATIONAL NURSERYMAN 
THE HISTORY OF COMPRESSED AIR SPRAYING IN 
OHIO 
There is situated in old Lake Erie, four miles south of the 
historic Put-in-Bay, a tract of land containing about 3500 
acres which is almost exclusively devoted to peach culture. 
The fruit raised here is highly colored, of peculiarly delicious 
flavor, and throughout the country, from Ohio to Connecti¬ 
cut, Catawba Island, peaches are in great demand. 
In its infancy, peach culture in that section, meant 
planting the trees, plowing up to them in the fall, and away 
from them in the spring, cutting out the dead wood, and a 
few of the unnecessary limbs, and when they reached 
maturity, coining the luscious fruit into money. There was 
a time when the grower received $3.00 and $3.15 per bushel 
in the orchard, the^purchaser grading and packing them 
himself. But those days have passed. About 1894 or ’95 
it was noticed that some of the trees in a couple adjoining 
orchards looked gray as if fine ashes had been sifted over 
compressed air in fifty gallon tanks, mounted on two 
wheeled carts. He was favorably impressed with this 
method of spraying as it seemed to meet conditions fully. 
Returning to the island, he equipped his plant which already 
contained a boiler, with a steam engine and an air com¬ 
pressor. He then, considering common boiler tanks kept 
in stock, unsafe to use with such a powerful agent as com¬ 
pressed air confined, arranged with a reliable manufacturer 
to make special tanks for spraying purposes, that would 
stand a pressure of 250 lbs. These were made of heavy gal¬ 
vanized steel, and when nearing completion were again 
dipped inside and otitside into the galvanizing solution, thus 
overcoming any possibility of leakage. To meet local con¬ 
ditions he had larger tanks made, to be mounted on a four- 
wheeled truck; one set of 130 gallon tanks to be used with a 
team, and another set of 98 gallon tanks that one horse 
could pull. A seLconsisted of two tanks, one for the com¬ 
pressed air and the other for the liquid and connected by the 
Cylinders of Compressed Air Sprayer.—Used by W. H. Owen Co., 
Sandusky, Ohio. 
them. Small branches cut from these trees were sent to 
the experiment station at Wooster, and word was returned 
that they were thoroughly infected with the San Jose scale. 
Then came trouble for the orchardists. The state entomolo¬ 
gist arrived upon the scene; portions of the orchards were 
ordered to be cut down and burned, and trees not so badly 
infected were to be sprayed with kerosene. From that time 
one thing after another was tried, but with only partial 
success: whale-oil soap, crude oil, emulsions, until finally 
the home boiled lime-sulphur wash was applied, and is now 
used successfully throughout Ottawa Co., Ohio. 
After it was generally conceded that the proper remedy 
had been found, then arose the question of the best methods 
of application. Some used the fifty gallon barrel sprayers; 
others the two hundred gallon wooden tanks with a hand 
pump, requiring three men and plenty of time to run them. 
But labor was scarce and time meant money. Something 
must be done. Gasoline engines and other heavy machin¬ 
ery jolting through the orchards got out of order and refused 
to work. Finally, in 1902, one of the growers went to see 
an acquaintance in the East who had commenced using 
Compressed Air Sprayer in Operation.—W. H. Owen Co.. Sandusky. Ohio. 
proper valves and piping. They were also fitted up with 
high pressure gauges, and a separator, which prevented 
clogging of the nozzles. The liquid tank contained an 
agitator placed near the bottom and operated by the rush 
of air through it into tank. The rigs were light and could 
be used any time of the year with no complicated machinery 
to get out of order in the orchard, and could be operated by 
one man using the spraying spar or by two men with two 
lines of hose and nozzles. 
Much interest was manifested by neighboring orchardists 
in this new method of spraying and when it was proven to be 
a complete success, other plants sprung up throughout the 
surrounding territory, and it is now conceded throughout 
Ottawa Co., that, for the commercial orchardist, compressed 
air as a power for spraying, covers more of the natural 
requirements and meets the demand more fully than any 
medium yet adopted. With it you attain the maximum 
required power, at the minimum cost for labor. 
W. FT. Owen Co., 
L. D. Owen. 
Sandusky, O. 
