The watchman and southron. [volume] (Sumter, S.C.) 1881-1930, 1911-03-22
VALUABLE TO FRUIT MEN.

~ - oohi"uI anu II. w. barre, or
the South Carolina experimental sta
ton have prepared for your CORES
pondent the following information
and suggestions for farmers and fruit
men:
Worm and Rot i'm Peaches.
The wormy fruit on plum and
peach trees is caused by the notorious
insect known as curcuio. The full
grown insect is a warty snout beetle
which makes the crescent shaped
puncture on plum; on peach this
puncture is much less conspicuous;
the puncture appearing like a pin
hole, or it may be located by the
small gum globule, or it may be en-
tirely obsolete. In the punctures the
eggs are laid which hatch into the
worms so frequently found when the
fruit is cut open.
The following is the standard
spray for controlling the worms in
the fruit: Arsenate o. lead.
pounds; milk Of lime, made by slack
ing pounds Of quick lime in water.
so gallons
Mix the arsenate Of lead paste
with enough water to make a thin
paste and add this ID the barrel Of
water on which the spray pump is
mounted. Then add the milk Of lime
and the spray is complete.
Brown rot is a fungus disease.
which, as the name indicates. causes
a rotting of certain fruits, especially
peaches and plums. 1t is the most
prevalent of the peach diseases and
is the one that is responsible for prac-
tically all decayed fruit that we find
in peach and plum orchards. The
disease is easily recognized by the
brown color of the fruit as it hangs
on the trees. Such fruit is usually
soft and mushy when freshly rotted.
but later becomes dry and hard and
remains on the trees as rotton mum
mics. If such rotten peaches and
plums are examined carefully num-
Der of small pustules Will be found
covering the surface of. the fruit.
These pustules are masses of tiny
seed-like bodies (spores,) which are
blown about by the wind and serve
to spread the disease. When one of
these little spores lodges on a peach
and finds conditions favorable, it
germinate and grows there and pro-
duces the rot.
When attacked in the right way,
brown rot is one of the easiest dis
eases to control that we have to con-
tend with. All of the old rotten
fruit of the previous season should
be collected and burned. This gets
rid Of great deal of the fungus
which causes the disease and makes
spraying more successful. .eS
We have found that the sassst and
best spray solution TO use in combat
ing brown rot is the lime-sulphur
mixture. There are a great num-
Der Of commercial brands of this mix
ture and some Of these have been
tested by careful eXperimenters and
found to be very satisfactory. We
are testing these this season and hope
later to be able to make a statement
| concerning them. At present we are
recommending the use of the home
a cnlf hi
pounds of quick lime, pounds of
sulphur to so gallons of water. For
| brown rot, the first application of
| this mixture should be made about
three weeks after the sepals or shucks
drop. The second application should
| be made about one month later. With
late varieties 4 third application will
be necessary about three or four
/ weeks later than this, or a week or
! two before the fruit begins to ripen.
| Following are the directions for MAX
ing self boiled lime-sulphur: Place
the desired amount Of fresh quick
lime in a tub or barrel and add Just
enough water to slake it, An excess
of water seems to drown the lime and
retards the Stacking process. AS soon
as the lime begins to crumble apart
and a violent boiling is set up. add
the sulphur and stir in thoroughly
adding enough water to keep any
part of the mixture from becoming
dry or burning. Keep this well
stirred and allow the boiling to con-
tinue for from five to ten minutes
Special care should be exercised at
this time to keep any part Of the mix
ture from becoming dry. Enough
water should be added. in fact. so
that the paste is thin enough to he
easily stirred. After the boiling HIS