Mountain advocate. (Barbourville, Ky.) 1904-1935, 1913-02-28
AGRICULTURAL
EXTENSION
Make the Home Orchard
Produce This Year

produce good fruit is an import
ant one. Everywhere one can find
orchards that have produced good
fruit during the past seasons, but
owing to neglect and advancing
age, they have fallen into the habit
of bearing only in seasons at which
time every tree is iull OF fruit. Any
one who has an orchard of this kind
should be anxious to know what
steps may be taken to make the
trees return a crop Of fruit regular
ly.
One of the chief difficulties in car.
ing for the home orchard is h e
spraying. Fairly good fruit may
often be produced without cultiva-
ton. Pruning is not such difficult
operation and there is a wide range
of time in which this operation can
be performed. With spraying it is
different, however; and in order to
get the best results the spray ma
terial should be applied at the prop
err time.
If San Jose scale is present in the
orchard the first spraying should
be applied during the dormant sea-
son, preferably as late as possible
before the buds start to swell. For
this spraying use strong lime-sul-
phur wash. This may be prepared
at home or it may be purchased
from various manufacturing COM
panies.
The next important spraying
should be given just after the petals
fall, and before the calyx cup closes.
1t is given at this time so as to
guard against the cooling moth,
the insect that causes wormy fruit
and causes the young apple to fall
off. Bordeaux or dilute lime-sul-
phur may be used, to which add
two or three pounds of lead arsen-
ate. The Bordeaux will serve to
keep the fungus disease in check.
From four to six weeks later a
third and fourth spraying may be
necessary in order to protect the
fruit from bitter rot. scab, black rot,
sooty blotch, codling moth, etc.
For these sprayings use dilute
bordeaux mixture, to which should
he added the arsenate OF lead.
In this work one should always
know just what he is spraying for.
In general, all leaf and fruit eating
insects, such as slugs, caterpillars,
beetles, codling moth, etc, are con-
trolled by using Paris green or
arsenate OF lead when the insects
first appear. Scale insects, such as
oyster shell scale, San ose scale
and scruiy bark louise, are control.
led by using some one OF the con-
tact sprays, such as kerosine emul
sion, or lime sulphur solution, in the
spring before the buds open.
Spraying is not the only operation
that is necessary to make an or
chard profitable. 1t is but one OF
the links in the chain of successful
orchard management. Pruning and
cultivation are also important and
should not be neglected ii one ex.
poets to get the best results.
The outfit needed for spraying "A
small orchard should consist of a
coed brass lined pump with a barrel
twenty-five feet OF hose, good
eight or ten foot bamboo extension
rod, with one or more standard
nogzles. The whole outfit should
not cost more than twenty OF
twenty. FIVE dollars, and il cared for
i it will last several years. A hal
day or a day at the most will suffice
to spray an orchard OF from twenty
FIVE to fifty trees. according to size
Lime-sulphur wash is made as
follows: Twenty pounds lump lime
is slaked to a creamy mixture and
fifteen pounds of sulphur added
To this should be added fifteen gal
/. Ions OF water. Boil for one hour
stirring frequently. AT the end q