The L'Anse sentinel. (L'Anse, L.S., Mich.) 18??-current, 1892-04-09
SPRAYING FRUITS.
WHY. HOW AND WHEN 1T IS
DONE.
Read Before the Thirty-fourth Annual
Meeting OF the Missouri state Horti-
cultural Society mt sedaiia. NO.. De
cember .. 1891.
by william stahl. Quincy. m.

this method OF fighting insects and fungi and
get our share Of the financial reward. II It does
not pay to spray, we want TO know II, that we
may not be led into an Improbable undertake
ing We may be In the business OF fruit-grow-
ing for our health, but we are also In II for the
profit that may be made.
My experience with spraying Is probably as
extensive as that OF any one In the country. and
II has shown me very conolusively that It does
pay to spray, and IL pays very handsomely.
Some times 4 pays 500 to 1000 por cent That
Is certainly sufficiently prosperous Are you
incredulous about that' can only say that
my experience has shown me that profit Of
800 per cent in spraying is by no means I'M
usual, and there are many In this
state, some probably present here to-
day, that can bear the same testimony
Profit depends upon the cost Of thing and
the results achieved. We will first consider
the cost OF spraying. II is inconsiderable.
Fortunately no one need be deferred from
spraying by the cost. In spraying there are
three i'm portapt mixtures used. Other things
are used but these three mixtures are used much
more than all things put together, and many
fruit growers, perhaps n majority, will never
have occasion TO use anything other than these
three mixtures. For the sake OF brevity will
consider only these three. They are the Bor
deaux mixture, tho London purple solution, and
tie kerosene emulsion
The kerosene emulsion Is TO prevent the
ravages OF hop lice, SQUASH bugs. leaf hoppers,
aphis. bark lice chinch bugs etc. IL IS made
by dissolyng by boiling, onehalf pound TSin a Of
gallon OF kerosene, and the whole is agitated
brlskly until a stable mixture is forced. The
agitation is best accomplished by using force
pump and pumping the mixture With force
back into the vessel that contains IL. This
emulsion is ordinarily diluted for use by adding
ten to twelve parts OF water. IL may be diluted
and used at once, or IL may be allowed to stand
and be diluted when needed. Now. rs to the
cost of it, Only the best whale-oil soap should
I'M nan hut ~ gfG N an "a nor A
pound OF the soap and two gallons OF kerosene,
total cost 40 to 45 cents, will make thirty gallons
OF the emulsion diluted for use. Not taking
into account the light labor required in its pre-
paration, the cost of the emulsion, ready for
use. is less than cents per gallon.
The second of these three important RENE
dies is the bordeaux mixture, made us
follows: Dissolve six pounds OF sulphate OF
copper lblue vitrioD in sixteen gallons of
water. In another vessel slake four pounds
OF lime In six gallons OF water. When this
has cooled, pour II slowly into the copper solu-
by constant stirring. As to the cost OF This;
The water, of course costs nothing, the lime
next to nothing, and 100 pounds OF the col per
sulphate will cost only cents per pound. The
Bordeaux mixture is used for the black rot of
the grape for pear and ounce leaf blight and
for potato blight or rot. To spray with il the
labor and material including The cost OF putting
II on, not more than III 90 per acre.
The third, and most important OF these RENE
dies, is the London purple solution-the remedy
for the codling moth, cankcr worm and curcnlio
OF the plum, etc 1t Is made by mixing London
purple with sufficient water to make q paste
This is stirred thoroughly into pail OF water
and allowed to stand over night The contents
OF the pail are then strained through fine sieve
or u coarse cloth into the distributing tank or
barrel containing water. There should be from
40 TO $50 gallons of water for each pound of
London purple. The pound OF London purple
will cost 20 cents. aud fifty gallons of the sou-
tion will spray an acre OF the average orchard.
/ Mr.. L.. ID. l.. Evans OF Houseman Mich.
writes me that with my barrel sprayer, which
4
ten-acre orchard between O'Clock in the fore
noon and in the afternoon, using eight barrels
OF solution. 1t Is easy 10 see that this spraying
did not cost 20 cents per acre for material and
labor. Mr.. Evans says: Our orchard is the
only one that has any fruit ON II At all:
Mr.. Frank Welhouse, Fairmount Kan, the
largest apple-grower in the country, writes
I'VE sprayed 100 acres twice, equal TO $50 acres
once, and 2T acres three times equal TO 1871
acres once, or total OF LIS acres at single
spraying To do this we used $1,000 gallons of
water and 600 pounds OF London purple, and 1t
the expense stands thus: Forty-six days with
team at $3.50 per day, S1i5 600 pounds London
purple at 10 cents pound, $50; total, sl75: or a
little over Is cents per acre and about ~ mills
per tree for each spraying"
AS already appears 1t Is necessary to spray
more than once. Alittle information about the
times Of spraying will be necessary to deter
mine fully the cost OF spraying each orchard or
vineyard and with this information we will
rs to how to spray. To prevent the black rot
OF the grape by using the Bordeaux
mixture, spray In the spring after
the vineyard has been pruned and put in
order, but before vegetation has started; again
about ten days before the flowers open; the
third time when the flowers are opening. and
from this time on every three weeks until the
fruit begins to color. To destroy codling moth,
canker worm or curculio OF the apple by using
the London purple solution, spray soon after
the size of pea. II the best results are to be
obtained, a second application should be made
q week or ten days after the first. To prevent
a
and spray every three weeks until August /.
II will be seen that not many sprayngs are re-
quired and that the cost is insignificant when
compared witha heavy yield OF perfect fruit.
There is one item In the cost OF spraying yet
10 be considercd-the pump good pump
does not cost o large sum, but must warn
you not TO buy low-priced pump, by
which mean one costing Si,O0 or 500 You
cannot reasonably expect to get serviceable
sured that you will not get such pump
unless you pay. reasonable price for 1t.
or all the vexatious things in the world, a
spraying pump that will not spray deservcdly,
stands near the head. Inferior pumps that
would not work or that would not do good work.
have done more than all things else To rctard
the spread of spraying and the constant freeing
OF our orchards and vineyards from insects and
fungi For spraying vines. shrubs, etc.
Knapsack Sprayer is best, and good one
be got for from SIC TO SIS For spraying trees
Barrel Pump is required, and good one can
pe g1t ior from Sl 40 SiS up and rn nr,
II. A good pump used with reasonable care
and stored properly when not ir will last
for years, so that the pump adds scarcely any
thing TO the cost OF spraying.
Finally, what do we accomplish by spraying?
Doubtless you are familiar with the reports OF
experimental stations, and especially with the
reports of the Department OF Agriculture, and
without doubt this intelligent body reads horti-
cultural papers; hence there can hardly be any
question among you that by spraying we can
prevent the ravages among our fruits OF those
Insect pests and fungous diseases that have
proved so destructive. But, while have the
greatest confidence In the experimental work
OF the Department OF Agriculture and of our
State experimen stations, much prefer to
have the expci fence Of actual practical fruit
growers whose experience covers not u few
feet. but acres. and who must pay for their ex-
pcrience out Of their own pockets, hence are
apt TO be conservative and safe In their con-
clusions Iapprehcnd that you are OF the same
disposition. Hence I will quote from very
few OF the letters have received from fruit
growers in this state. have letters from
above 1000 fruitgrowers that tried spraying
tho past season, and their universal testimony
Is that IL accomplishes all claimed for IL. But
time forbids that should quote from more
thar half dozen OF these letters.
Says Isaac Smnlley lila, Mercer Co, Mo-:
1t was too wet To- give IL u fair trial. We
never got 10 spray but once on our trees. We
sprayed about 900 trees and the apples look
fine. Apples left unsprayed In the orchard are
full OF worms. can't recommend IL too
highly"
H. W. Sherman. Neosho Co.: Il received two
wagon loads from. an orchard yesterday that
was sprayed and there was not q peck OF
fr,,if In, tno IA \