REPORT OF TEE HORTICULTURIST 97 



SESSIONAL PAPER No. 16 



Exchange, after deducting price of baskets and commission, was about $1.10, showing 

 $2.10 difference per barrel in favour of the shipment to Great Britain. Furthermore, 

 it was found tliis season that as good prices could be obtained on the Exchange for 

 good windfalls as for hand picked fruit. So that the difference in favour of the ship- 

 ment to Great Britain is even greater than appears. Thos. Russell writes as follows 

 regarding the fruit : — 



' I think these apples sold very well and I trust the result will be satisfactory to 

 you and lead to further consignments of specially selected fruit.' 



Mr. W. A. McKinnon, Chief of the Fruit Division, Commissioner's Branch, Depart- 

 ment of Agriculture, Ottawa, who was in Glasgow at the time, inspected the fruit and 

 reported the following : — 



' The Wealthy looked best and sold best (6/9 per case, as you probably know), 

 and all I saw were in perfect condition. McMahon also arrived in good order, but 

 appeared not to command the confidence of buyers, probably because new to them ; the 

 price was 4/9. Patten's Greening was in perfect condition, looked very attractive, and 

 brought 5/ per case. 



' Viewed commercially, the shipment had only one fault, namely, that there were 

 too few apples in the cases. The trade not only object to the Excelsior as making need- 

 less bulk, but as leaving an opening for fraud, and my observations go to confirm this 

 opinion, that packing is quite unnecessary for nearly all varieties of apples, and that at 

 the most a thin layer top and bottom would sufiice. I liked your plan of having a sheet 

 of paper placed between the Excelsior and the apples. 



' Viewed as exhibition stock, your shipment could not have been nearer perfection.' 



It is not probable that as good results would always be obtained by shipping 

 autumn apples in this way, but the returns show that if fruit is picked carefully and 

 packed carefully and reaches the steamer in the proper condition, it may arrive at the 

 other side of the Atlantic in good condition without cold storage. 



A CLOSE PLANTED WEALTHY APPLE ORCHARD. 



In the spring of 1896 there were in the farm nursery 144 five-year old Wealthy 

 apple trees which had been used in an experiment. As there was a piece of land avail- 

 able that spring they were planted out 10 by 10 feet apart, the object being to carry on 

 further experiments with them. Eight of these trees have died, but most of the rest are 

 making thrifty growth, though some of the trees are affected with canker and sunscald. 

 The soil has been kept thoroughly cultivated during the growing season every year 

 since. During the past four years this little orchard has given very good returns, con- 

 sidering the size of the trees, and it promises to be still more profitable. It is doubtful 

 if the trees will need much thinning, as a few of them die every year, letting the light 

 and air into the rest. The soil is a cold, light, sandy loam and from 1896 up to the 

 autumn of 1901 the only fertilizers applied were 284 lbs. of superphosphate, 54 lbs. of 

 muriate of potash, and 132 lbs. of sulphate of ammonia, the estimated value of which 

 was S6.64. 



In the following tables will be found the receipts and expenses for the past four 

 years : — 



1899— Picked, 189 gallons, sold at 10c. a gall 



1900— II 455 I. 10c. " 



1901— II 156 II 15c. .1 



1902— I. 982 „ 333 galls, at 25= i (Glasgow) 



530 11 (second grade) sold at Ottawa, 

 G '-'' 

 1899— Windfalls, GO galls, sold at 5c. gall. . l. ............... .. 



1900— II 143 I. 5c. 11 



1901— 11 224 11 5c. II 



1902— M 932i •! 8JSJ .. 



16—7 



