Michael, aside from the sheer potency of the chemicals, and container size/cost, here are some other differences between small scale vs. large commercial spraying: Most commercial products, unlike garden products, don't add a surfactant to the formulation. They expect the grower to add the surfactant. Not all commercial formulations require the producer to add a surfactant, but some formulations recommend it. Some crop protectants recommend adding other pesticides in the mix to reduce resistance buildup, or increase effectiveness on certain pests. Unlike some homeowner pesticides, many crop protectants have a more limited use on the label to avoid resistance buildup. For example, Pristine can not be used more than 2 consecutive applications, without rotation of a different class fungicide, and no more than 4 times per season on certain crops. While it is true there is less risk of resistance buildup for small growers, nevertheless, using Pristine more than 2 consecutive times is off-label and illegal. Other crop protectants have similar labels. Unlike homeowner formulations, many crop protectants require a buffer before mixing. Pesticide manufacturers expect commercial applicators to know this. I use a small pH tester to test the carrier (water) before adding the crop protectant. pH can be adjusted by adding citric acid, or some other buffering agent. Commercial applicators are expected to know all parts of the label. For instance, what are the three "action" words and what they mean. Danger/poison; Warning; Caution. Its also good to know the LD50 values of what you're spraying and what they mean. Other things helpful to know - What products are Cholinesterase inhibitors. Some growers have their Cholinesterase levels checked periodically. Because of potency, there is a higher level of caution needed with commercial products. Personal Protective Equipment (PPE) is a must. Obviously, one should be familiar with REI, and PHI, on the label. That's all I can think of of the top of my head. Basically, one needs to get as much education as possible, before using commercial products. I'm in the process of getting my pesticide license, which is more involved, but have learned more about the responsible use of pesticides. For anyone wanting to start learning about pesticides, there are several good resources on the internet. The Michigan Fruit Management Guide is an excellent resource for the serious grower. A small grower need not spray as often as the program outlines, but the Management guide lists when diseases are most susceptible to control and the best products to control them. It is not available on the internet, but can be ordered for a small cost. This is much more preferable, to developing a spray program from a forum on the internet. I'm not dissing the forum, I'm just saying I've seen some information regarding pesticide timing, that was incorrect. I'm making NO reference to this particular thread. I have little experience with apples and have never read the labels of many of the products listed in this thread. Other resources: The Midwest Fruit Management Guide and the Midwest Fruit Management Pest Handbook are very good (for my area). I believe they are available in downloadable form on the internet. And above all, read the label, BEFORE YOU PURCHASE THE PRODUCT. What you find there might surprise you. Labels can be obtained from CDMS.net.

See link on pear scab (aka blackspot). As I mentioned earlier, immunox should take care of it, although as the article says, it's not as severe or devastating as apple scab. Regarding your apples, I posit leafhopper b/c the upper leaves of your apples are curled, a result of the leafhoppers sucking the sap out of them. If you can kill the leafhopper nymphs (often seen on underside of leaves) it will be easier to control damage in future. Insecticidal soap, pyrethrins, and imidacloprid are all apparently effective, esp. the last as it's systemic in leaves -ie suck the sap, and bang your dead:).Honestly, you could probably ignore all of it and be OK, as they're not devastating issues. Here is a link that might be useful: blackspot

Hi Jan: Here's a real fly in the oinment to consider. The CAR galls won't release their spores until they have been wetted for a minimum period of time and the temperatures are warm enough, I can't say what those values are. I have seen them once get wetted for about 6 hours, start to "sprout", then the weather dries out and their development ceases. Are those galls done for the year or will they continue given the right environment? I don't know. I do know that in my location, we can get rain for hours just a mile north of my trees but everything to the south stays dry for weeks on end. The gall spores can travel for more than a mile easily and infect trees. See the problem? One note about Mancozeb. There are forms of it that are labeled (legal) for use on apples and others that are not. I got my cart in front of the horse a couple of years ago and now have one that is not legal on apples; there is at least one Manzate formulation that is, I believe their are others. Read the labels thoroughly before you buy, if it doesn't state the plant you're intending it for don't get it.

Hi Bruce: from the radar I watch I'd say you get many more rains than we do in the Spring, lucky for you I guess. You are right about finding others in similar climates. The principal diseases are Cedar Apple Rust (CAR) and Scab on the apples, I suppose if it was wet enough long enough we'd see Powdery Mildew (PM) but we don't. As of yet, I haven't seen Fire Blight (FB) on the apples and to be honest, I'm surprised. None of my 10 varieties were selected for FB resistance so I may be living on borrowed time. The main insect problems in the last 6 years have been White Apple Leafhopper, Tent Catepillars and Spider Mites; None of these have ever posed a serious threat and have been easily dealt with. I am not adequately up to speed on any borers that may pose a threat and need to get educated more. The most vexing problem so far has been dealing with iron chlorosis brought on by the calcareous soil @ pH 7.2. One of these days I'll treat it with chelated iron (Iron EDDHA) via a soil drench and possibly a foliar application but the stuff is rather expensive. For now I can say that my 6th leaf Freedom tree has done great considering it was my first and it's form looks like it as my training skills are just now getting adequate. Until this year, Freedom did not need to be sprayed for any diseases, this year it was whacked by CAR but will grow out of it. The tree is a prolific grower here and demands Summer pruning to keep it in bounds. I also have a 4th leaf Jonafree. Don't believe what the catalogs say, it is NOT very resistant to CAR! To be fair, my trees are surrounded by many 100s of cedar trees within 1/2 mile, full of galls and the gall season lasts many weeks every year from start to finish. On the other hand, the active ingredient in a number of fungicides, Myclobutanil, works wonders on CAR as does Mancozeb. The oldie trees were selected for making sweet cider mostly and hard cider if I find that there isn't enough freezer space for the sweet cider in the future. Whatever varieties you go with, I'll be interested in seeing how they perform, if nothing else, we might do some scion trading in the future. Oh, and one last thing for now, don't do like me and select most of your trees without much thought about flowering periods. I'll be happy to help you in any way I can, feel free to E-mail me by looking at the "my page" section for my post. Michael