The Lakeland evening telegram. (Lakeland, Fla.) 1911-1922, 1919-01-14
SHOULDN'T SPRAY
ORANGE BLOSSOM
Is Advice Of Large Bee Owner, IN
Behalf Of Honey Raisers

That Floridas 100000 honey crop
is threatened through eorts OF insect
icide manufacturers to foster the
spraying of orange trees while yet IN
bloom is the warning OF Haf1oro
Jones, federal food administrator OF
Hillsborough county and himself an
apiarist of high standing.
Florida is the home Of the largest
honey producer in the world" says
Mr. Jones. Hundreds Of other small
er producers have been getting honey
| in increasing quantities until the val
ue of this crop will soon approximate
100000, yet the whole industry
faces great losses unless the effect OF
the early spraying campaign can be
counteracted."
/ ]. J. Wilder, of Bradentown, is the
worlds champion producer Of honey.
At Bradentown he has 5000 hives and
his 1918 crop brought him $4,000,
The number Of apriaries in Florida is
constantly increasing. Among the
most prominent pioneers in this In
dustry is Harvey Hewitt, owner of the
Dream Lake apiaries at Apopka. The
bee situation has become so endan.
gered that he has issued this open
letter, addressed particularly to or
ange growers:
ITO Orange Growers: The manu-
facturers Of insecticides are advising
you to spray your trees whilst they
are in bloom, On the grounds that it
will give you brighter fruit and will
help the blossoms set. Before con-
tracing for the spraying Of your
groves consider the following common
sense facts:
"All oranges are bright until at
tackled by the rust mite which occurs
only after the orange has attained
considerable growth. Spraying the
bloom can have no possible effect in
this direction so spray after the
bloom.
mo blossom will set fruit unless
pollinated with the exception Of the
Washington navel which is self-polli-
nating) and there as just three ways
in which this is effected:
"u) BY pollen falling from bios.
som to one below it in the same tree.
"(2) BY pollen carried by the wind.
"(3) BY the agency of insects which
carry particles Of pollen from flower
to flower from different trees and
parts Of the grove, securing cross
pollination most desirable for the set
ting of healthy fruit. fo
"The first two methods of pollina.
ton are SO uncertain as to be negligi-
BILE and 1t is to the third that you owe
your success as an orange grower.
| There are few insects except bees
flying at the time Of orange bloom,
and II you spray with lime-sulphur
you drive the bees away from your
trees and lose their valuable services
for the time the Objectionable sulphur
odor permeates our grove. No bios
som that the spray enters can set
| fruit, for the pollen is dampened and
rendered unavailable. 1t is only the
blossoms pollinated before spraying
and after the effects Of spraying have
passed away that set any fruit. Spray.
ing in bloom can do no good, but it
can do much harm"
All that has saved the industry, 80
far, says Mr. Jones, is the fact that
the sprays have been most lime.sul
phur mixtures and that all groves
could not be sprayed at once. This
permitted the bees to continue oper.
ations and set some fruit in spite of
the spraying, Bees are of more ser.
vice than fertilizer, says the admins.
traitor, for with no fertilizer but with
some bees grower is sure of some
fruit, while with some fertilizer and
no bees the chances are against hay.
ing any fruit at all.