Improved Compositions for use as Dressing or Wash for Hop and other Plants.
Year: 1896

page_text: Date of Application, 5th May, 1896
Complete Specification Left, 5th Feb., 1897-Accepted, 5th July, 1897
PROVISIONAL
SPECIFICATION.
Improved Compositions for use as Dressing or Wash for Hop
and other Plants.
I, BERNARD SHIRLEY DYER, D.Sc. (London), of 17 Great Tower Street, in the
City of London, Consulting Chemist, do hereby declare the nature of this invention
to be as follows:-
This invention relates to improved compositions for use as dressing or wash for
the purpose of protecting hop and other plants from and of mitigating the evil
effects of the attacks of insect or animal pests or parasites, and of mould, mildew,
or fungoid or vegetable parasites, and also for the purpose of destroying such
animal or insect pests or parasites, or mould, mildew, or fungoid or vegetable
parasites.
For these purposes I produce a composition containing picric acid or a picrate or
picrates or picric acid and a picrate or picrates, adhesive substance and a suitable
proportion of liquid such as water with or without the addition of an alkali or
alkalies or of an alkaline sulphide or alkaline sulphides, the proportions varying
according to circumstances and whether it is desired to produce the composition in
the first instance in the form of a more or less weak solution, or in a concentrated
form. The composition may be made by dissolving the materials and mixing them
together so as to form a solution of a convenient degree of concentration, which can
afterwards be diluted with water to a suitable extent, or by mixing them in the
form of a paste which may be afterwards so diluted. The wash may be distributed
in the usual way.
One form of composition containing picric acid and adhesive substances according
to my invention and which I give here merely by way of example and without
limiting myself thereto is as follows:-
5 lbs. (or thereabout) of soft soap,
to lb. (or thereabout) of picric acid,
lb. (or thereabout) of liver of sulphur, and
100 gallons (or thereabout) of water.
In preparing the composition the ingredients may be mixed, into a paste or
dissolved in sufficient water to make a solution or emulsion the quantity of water at
this stage being immaterial except as a matter of convenience. The paste or
concentrated solution is afterwards diluted with the remainder of the water to form
100 gallons or thereabouts of solution for use as a wash.
The proportions mentioned of the several ingredients may be variously modified
and some of the ingredients (for example the liver of sulphur) may in some cases be
omitted. A small quantity of soda may, if desired, be used to expedite the
solution of the picric acid; or a corresponding quantity of picrate of soda may be
used in place of picric acid.

page_text: COMPLETE SPECIFICATION.
Improved Compositions for use as Dressing or Wash for Hop
and other Plants.
I, BERNARD SHIRLEY DYER, D.Sc. (London), of 17 Great Tower Street, in the
City of London, Consulting Chemist, do hereby declare the nature of this invention
and in what manner the same is to be performed to be particularly described and
ascertained in and by the following statement:-
This invention relates to improved compositions for use as dressing or wash for
the purpose of protecting hop and other plants from and of mitigating the evil effects
of the attacks of insect or animal pests or parasites, and of mould, mildew, or
fungoid or vegetable parasites, and also for the purpose of destroying
such animal or insect pests or parasites, or mould, mildew, or fungoid
or vegetable parasites. For these purposes I produce a composition
as hereinafter described containing picric acid or a picrate or picrates, or picric acid
and a picrate or picrates, and adhesive substance soluble in water. Sometimes I
add alkaline compound. Suitable alkaline compound is one or more of the
following viz. an alkali or alkalies; an alkaline sulphide or alkaline sulphides. In
practising my invention the proportions will obviously vary according to
circumstances, and whether it is desired to produce the composition in the first
instance in the form of a more or less weak solution, or in a concentrated form.
The composition may be made by dissolving the materials and mixing them
together so as to form a solution of a convenient degree of concentration, which can
afterwards be diluted with water to a suitable extent, or by mixing them in the form
of a paste which may be afterwards so diluted. The wash may be distributed in
the usual way. I have found the following proportions to be productive of good
results:-
to lb. (or thereabout) of picric acid,
5 lbs. (or thereabout) of soft soap,
lb. (or thereabout) of liver of sulphur, and
100 gallons (or thereabout) of water.
In preparing the composition I mix the ingredients into a paste or dissolve them
in sufficient water to make a solution or emulsion, the quantity of water at this
stage being immaterial, except as a matter of convenience. The paste or
concentrated solution I afterwards dilute with the remainder of the water to form
100 gallons or thereabouts of solution for use as a wash.
Although in the foregoing example soft soap is the adhesive substance, other
substances possessing similar adhesive properties, soluble in water, and not injurious
to plants (for example, hard soap, or glucose or sugar or molasses) may be
substituted but I consider that soft soap is to be preferred; also, in lieu of picric
acid an equivalent proportion of a picrate or picrates might be substituted, and in
lieu of the liver of sulphur an equivalent proportion of other alkaline sulphide or
sulphides might be employed.
Furthermore the proportions mentioned of the several ingredients may be
variously modified and some of the ingredients (for example, the liver of sulphur or
alkaline sulphide) may, in some cases, be omitted. For instance, I have found that
to produce a composition suitable for protecting hop and other plants from the
attacks of aphis, the quantity of picric acid used in proportion to that of the other

page_text: ingredients may be considerably reduced and liver of sulphur may be omitted,
quantities giving good results being
2 oz. (or thereabout) of picric acid,
5 lbs. (or thereabout) of soft soap, and
100 gallons (or thereabout) of water.
A small quantity of soda may, if desired, be used to expedite the solution of the
picric acid; or a corresponding quantity of picrate of soda may be used in place of
picric acid.
Having now described the nature of my said invention and the manner of
carrying it into practical effect, I hereby declare that I do not claim (because I
know it has been proposed to use) solutions of salts of dinitroorthocresol, with or
without the addition of soap, in destroying caterpillars, insects, mushrooms, fungi,
or the like; also to use, as a remedy for phylloxera vestatrix, a syrup-like paint or
mixture of oil and tallow, in equal quantities by weight, with picric acid to the
amount of one twentieth of the weight of the oil and tallow. But what I claim is :-
1. A composition for use as dressing or wash for hop and other plants comprising
picric acid or picrate soft soap or similarly adhesive substance soluble in water, and
alkali or alkaline sulphide the whole dissolved in water as hereinabove described.
2. The hereinabove described composition for use as dressing or wash for hop and
other plants, consisting of pioric acid, soft soap, and water, substantially as
specified.
3. The hereinabove described composition for use as dressing or wash for hop
and other plants consisting of picric acid, soft soap, liver of sulphur and water,
substantially as specified.
Dated this 5th day of February 1897.
For the Applicant,
W. LLOYD WISE,
46 Lincoln's Inn Fields, London, W.C., Chartered Patent Agent.