THE NATIONAL NURSERYMAN 
81 
Fumigating. 
The practice of fumigating all seedling stock, buds, grafts 
or cuttings used for propagation purposes, (either from out¬ 
side sources or from one’s own nursery) with hydrocyanic 
gas can not be too strongly recommended. Recent experi¬ 
ments have demonstrated that this gas will not injure 
peach buds during the budding season when properly used 
even at the normal strength recommended for fumigating 
nursery trees. 
Spraying for this pest regularly during the dormant 
season should be practiced by nurserymen even if the scale 
has not been found in the nursery. It is a good preventa¬ 
tive, and also serves to add vigor to the trees. To those 
nurserymen who have not yet met the worst insect pest of 
the nursery, it is urgently recommended that they be 
steadily on their guard for its first appearance, and no pains 
be spared in taking every precaution in the fumigation of all 
propagating stock, in spraying with proper solutions and in 
employing uptodate methods in the conduct of the nursery. 
To those nurserymen who have experienced losses from the 
presence of this pest in their nurseries, it can only be recom¬ 
mended that they continue the vigorous precautions and 
methods followed in the past. 
Spray Mixtures. 
The subject of paramount interest among growers now 
is the efficiency and safeness of the remedies on the market 
for the control of the San Jose scale. There is no doubt 
that the home made lime-sulphur wash is generally accepted 
by the progressive orchardists and nurserymen as the best 
remedy for the scale, taking into consideration its fungicidal 
properties and effect upon the trees; but the trouble and 
time involved in making the wash has led many to desire 
reliable information regarding various other washes on the 
market. 
Heretofore, the majority of the proprietary solutions 
offered for sale to control this pest have been mixtures of 
petroleum oils, soap, resin, etc. There is no doubt that 
Some of these now on the market are of great value in con¬ 
trolling the pest when used at sufficient strength and applied 
in a careful manner. The ease of preparing and applying 
these miscible oils has caused their substitution for the home 
made lime-sulphur wash by many growers. On the other 
hand, the lack of fungicidal properties and the possible 
injury to trees when applied by careless laborers, together 
with frequent changes in the make up of the solution by 
some manufacturers, has prevented their acceptance by the 
most careful growers. Emphasis can justly be laid upon 
the possible injury to trees by some of these solutions from 
reports of the results of their use during the past year in 
Maryland, and we have received similar reports from other 
states. The writer has investigated several of the reports of 
injury to peaches in Maryland and found them to be reliable. 
These experiences, then, should serve as a further warning 
to orchardists to be on their guard in the use of spray mix¬ 
tures of this type, for peach trees in particular, as well as 
for other kinds of trees. 
Proprietary Lime-Sulphur Mixture. 
Manufacturers appreciating the demand for a lime- 
sulphur wash which can be sold ready for use, have placed 
on the market several brands of concentrated lime-sulphur 
compounds. Three of these solutions, viz., the “Rex,” 
“Niagara” and “Orchard” brands, were included in the 
experiments conducted by the Maryland Station (see 
Maryland Experiment Station Bulletin 131, which may be 
had for the asking) during the season of 1908. At the 
dilution of one to nine, each gave good results in killing the 
scale, and no leaf curl appeared on peach trees in the experi¬ 
ment where this character of spray was used. However, 
while we expect these solutions to control this disease when 
applied at the proper time, yet further experimentation is 
necessary to clear the question. Finally, while we consider 
the home-made lime-sulphur to be the very best spray solu¬ 
tion for the control of San Jose scale, where circumstances 
are convenient for its use, yet if it is desired to use a more 
easily prepared wash, the concentrated lime-sulphur solu¬ 
tions referred to above, for we have not tried the others, 
seem to offer the best substitute of the manufactured pro¬ 
ducts on the market. 
Time of Application. 
The lime-sulphur and the miscible or soluble oils which 
are in a dormant state when used to control the San Jose 
scale are suitable only for treatment of trees. In case of the 
lime-sulphur compounds, it has been shown that where only 
one application is made, the treatment should be deferred 
until as late in the spring as possible, just before the buds 
begin to develop, owing to the fact that the effectiveness of 
the wash depends to a great extent upon its presence on 
the trees after the breeding season begins. In cases of bad 
infestation, it is best to give the trees two treatments, one in 
the fall and the other in early spring. It has also been 
necessary for the commercial orchardists to commence 
spraying even in suitable weather in the midst of winter, in 
order to finish before the trees become active. Other cir¬ 
cumstances will some times make necessary the treating of 
the orchard in the fall, but in such cases the spraying 
should be left as late as possible. 
Spraying Apparatus. 
The employment of towers on the wagons carrying the 
spraying machines, on which the spraymen stand, are aiding 
in the accomplishment of this desired end. “What is the 
best pump to buy?” As a matter of fact, there is no “best” 
pump on the market. The conditions under which spray¬ 
ing is done are so varied that each individual will have to 
select that which his judgment dictates is the best adapted 
to his needs. He should, however, thoroughly investigate 
the capacity and working parts of a spray pump or machine 
before purchasing. There are a number of power sprayers 
on the market, and it is quite debatable as to which is the 
most satisfactory. There is no doubt that the “row spray¬ 
ers,” where the power is secured through connections with 
the wheels, are the most economical and satisfactory rigs 
for spraying field and truck crops. Manufacturers guaran¬ 
tee the same character of power sprayers to give satisfaction 
for spraying large orchard trees but the writer has not had 
an opportunity to observe any of the very latest sprayers 
of this kind in practical operation where large trees were 
completely sprayed before moving, and therefore is not pre- 
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