He noticed that though orchardists were following spraying schedules—­the best they could find—­some had splendid results in controlling apple scab and other pests, but others got results ranging between indifferent and poor.  This seemed paradoxical, in view of the fact that one man who followed the same spraying schedule as his neighbor would have more scabby apples than the other.

At that time L.F.  Strickland, orchard inspector for the state department of agriculture, had paid particular attention to a limited number of apple orchards in Niagara County with a view to controlling scab by spraying.  He discovered that, though the average spraying calendar is all right, climatic conditions in different parts of the same county often upset these standard calculations, so that a difference of one day or even a few hours in time of spraying often meant the difference between success and failure.  In other words, it was necessary to study all contributing factors, watch the orchards unremittingly and then decide on the exact day or even hour when conditions were right for a successful spray treatment.  He found that one must strike the times between times to get the optimum of results.

So Mr. Strickland, in conjunction with his regular work, kept an eagle eye on a few orchards and would notify the owners when it seemed the moment for spraying had come.  It worked out that those favored orchardists had magnificent yields of A-1 fruit; others in the same sections, following the rather flexible spraying calendars, didn’t do nearly so well.

All this set Manager Peet to thinking.  “Strickland hasn’t got an automobile and has lots of other work to do,” he reasoned; “but why, if he had a car and could give all the time necessary to such work, couldn’t the same results be had in orchards all over the county?  Why can’t this farm bureau put on a spraying service?”

He put the idea up to the executive committee of the bureau.  The idea was good, they agreed, but it would cost at least $500 to try it out the first year.  The bureau didn’t have the available funds.

“Tell you what,” they finally said:  “If you want to get out and rustle up 500 new members at one dollar each to pay for this thing, we’ll authorize it.”

Peet was telling me about it.  “Here the bureau had been working for four years with a paid-up membership of about 375,” he said, “and if I believed in my idea I had to get 500 more by spring.  It was February eighth when the committee gave me this decision.  Well, I did it in time to start the ball that spring!”

He got the new members because he had a service to sell them.  Arrangements were made whereby the county was divided into six zones, varying in soil and topographic conditions.  Criterion orchards were selected in each zone.  The inspector, with the aid of daily telegraphic weather reports and through constant inspection of the criterion orchards, decided when the hour struck for the most effective spraying of these orchards.