[eyolf]

Korney, I've seen your posts here, and realize YOU aren't a greenhorn. But others might be; that's why I might have seemed a little stern. I apologize if you were offended.

The real key with small handheld equipment is to be very careful about metering your product uniformly.

And that's not easy!

Oz to gallons is great as long as you know, accurately, how many gallons per acre you will spray. Or in your case, maybe oz per bed. I would be very cynical about the Ortho (or any other) hose end unit, especially with pesticides that need to "stick". You might get the correct quantity of product in the area, but not on the plant.

The directions for many products usually suggest spraying with handheld equipment just until the mix is ready to drip from the leaves.

Further looking shows that Daconil, for example, is marketed in various concentrations, dependant on usage. If you're good at math, you can certainly reduce an agricultural- or landscape-use product for your home garden...but if you aren't good at math you should ask someone who is to help.

Or buy the consumer product and follow label directions. For example, Daconil is available to tree services at a 40% concentration of Chlorothalonil, compared to 29% for the home gardener. The home gardener version suggests up tp 7 applications/season at a rate of 2.5 tsp/gallon with a gallon covering 200 sq ft. for tomatoes.

That would be a pint of mix per 3x8 bed, or maybe less if you follow the just-enough-to-cover-the leaves model, or you practice an open spacing model, underplanting with low crops, etc.

If you purchased the commercial Daconil, you'd want to use 29/40 x 2.5tsp, or about 1-3/4 tsp/gallon in the same amount of water over the same area. If the commercial stuff is only available in large quantitites, is it worth it?