First spray day his season for the apples and pears. Alyssa Gavlik helped me spray a 2-part product called Blossom Protect and Buffer Protect in an effort to stave off the impending threat of fireblight (Erwinia amylovora). Apples and pears are most susceptible to innoculation when they are in full bloom, temperatures are warm, and moisture levels are above a certain threshold. Like a week ago and like tomorrow.
Fireblight was never a problem in central Maine until a few years ago. Now it’s an annual concern. Typically orchards spray antibiotics. These are effective, but antibiotic-resistant strains of fireblight are now appearing in apple growing regions across the USA. And there are other concerns about overuse of antibiotics. Blossom/Buffer Protect works differently to ward off fireblight. The product literature says, “It contains microorganisms which block the fireblight pathogen from colonizing the blossoms and nectaries through natural competition for space and nutrients.” It’s considered “organic.”
Dreams
Spraying in our orchards is a team effort. One person drives, and the other walks alongside with a long hose and a spray gun. The tractor and sprayer can be finicky, but both behaved. Visiting every apple on the farm provides yet another opportunity to observe and, yes, dream. I make notes as I go along, but I also have to focus so I can position the tractor for access to the trees, keep things moving and avoid driving over the hose (which I’ve done).
Lest I forget, today is another dreamer’s birthday: Bob Dylan, who sang many songs about dreams, including my favorite Dylan-dream request, the last line of ‘Talkin’ World War 111 Blues’. “I’ll let you be in my dreams if I can be yours, I said that.”