Burgundy mixture
fungicidal spray
Burgundy mixture, named after the French district where it was first used to treat grapes and vines, is a mixture of copper sulfate and sodium carbonate. This mixture, which can have an overall copper concentration within the range of 1% through 20%, is used as a fungicidal spray for trees and small fruits.
History
Similar to the Bordeaux mixture, one of the earliest fungicides in use, Burgundy mixture, also known as “sal soda Bordeaux”, is used as a fungus preventative applicant on plants before fungi have appeared. Bordeaux mixture contains copper(II) sulfate, CuSO4, and hydrated lime, Ca(OH)2, while Burgundy mixture contains copper sulfate, CuSO4, and sodium carbonate, Na2CO3. First used around 1885, Burgundy mixture has since been replaced by synthetic organic compounds, or by compounds that contain copper in a non-reactive, chelated form. This helps to prevent the accumulation of high levels of copper in sediments surrounding the plants.
Synthesis and composition
Burgundy mixture is made by combining dissolved copper sulfate and dissolved sodium carbonate. Dissolved copper sulfate ratios generally range from 1:1 to 1:18. Sodium carbonate is generally added in higher quantities and at a dissolved ratio of 1:1.5. Over time, the sodium carbonate will crystallize out of solution, and the closer the copper sulfate to carbonate mixture is to 1:1 ratios, the faster this process occurs.
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This entry incorporates text from “Burgundy mixture” on English Wikipedia. Contributors are listed in the page history. Text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 License. Selected authority identifiers and statements are retrieved from Wikidata under CC0; their references and qualifiers remain part of the verification path.