9-10 EDWARD VII. SESSIONAL PAPER No. 16 A. 1910 



REPORT OF THE HORTICULTURIST. 



(W. T. Macoun.) 



March 31, 1909. 



Dr. Wm. Saunders, C.M.G., 



Director, Dominion Experimental Farms, 

 Ottawa, 



Sir, — ^I have the honour to submit herewith the Twenty-second Annual Report of 

 the Horticultural Division.- 



While all the experiments conducted in 1908-9 are not referred to in this report, 

 there will be found the results of those which it is thought desirable to publish at this 

 time. There is also contained in this report records of other matters pertaining to the 

 work of this Division. 



I have the honour to be, sir. 



Your obedient servant, 



W. T. MACOUlSr, 



Horticulturist. 



character of season. 



Since the year 1898 a record has been kept in the Horticultural Division of the 

 first day when the frost was out of the ground sufficiently and the ground dry enough 

 to dig in the nursery at the Central Experimental Farm. The record is as follows : 

 1898, April 12 ; 1899, April 18 ; 1900, April 19 ; 1901, April 8 ; 1902, Maj;ch 31 ; 1903, 

 March 23; 1904, April 11; 1905, April 13; 1906, April 16; 1907, April 16; 1908, 

 April 17. The average date for the eleven years is thus April 11. Leaving out the two 

 exceptionally early dates in 1902 and 1903, the average date for the remaining nine 

 years is April 15. 



On April 9, 1908, there was still about a foot of snow on the level, but by the 15th 

 it was all gone except in the drifts, and the frost was out of the ground. April was a 

 cool month, the highest- temperature being 66-5° F. on the 26th, and the lowest 

 5-5° F. on the 4th. The early part of May was cool and vegetation was very 

 backward, but during the latter part of the month the weather was quite warm, the 

 temperature being 86-8° F. on the 26th, and with abundance of rain the growth 

 was rapid. The last spring frost recorded was on May 2, when the temperature was 

 30-8° F. There was noticeably less frosts than usual in the spring of 1908. 

 By June 13 rain was needed, the grass being burnt in places. The strawberry crop 

 began to show need of rain on the 22nd, and was considerably injured by the drought. 

 The raspberries, which followed, were also much injured. From the latter part of 

 June until October 24 there was never enough rain. There were some very hot days 

 in June and July, the temperature rising to 92° F. on June 8, and 96° 

 F. on July 30. There was heavy rain on July 21, which improved vegetation tem- 



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