64 VICTORIA SESSIONAL PAPER No. 16 A. 1901 



REPORT OF THE HORTICULTURIST. 



(W. T. Macoun.) 



Dr. Wm. Saunders, 



Director Dominion Experimental Farms, 

 Ottawa. 



Sir, — I have the honour to submit, herewith, the fourteenth annual report of this 

 division. While space will not permit of going fully into the details of all the 

 experiments which were conducted during the past year, nor of treating any one subject 

 at great length, the aim has been, in preparing the following report, to present a 

 summary of most of the work undertaken by the Horticulturist, and to give the results 

 of such experiments as it was thought best to publish this year. 



Character of Season. — The climate of the Ottawa Valley is, as a rule, very 

 favourable to the production of such fruits as will endure the winters, and the weather 

 this year was not exceptional in that respect. The atmospheric conditions which 

 usually prevail in the valley seem to be such as to prevent any long continued drought 

 in summer, and thus it is not often that there is too little rain. The winters are long 

 and rather severe, but there is generally a good covering of snow to protect low grow- 

 ing plants and the roots of trees. The weather was very changeable last winter, 

 there being no long spells of cold nor of mild weather. Up to March 1, there had not 

 been more than from ten to twelve inches of snow on the ground at one time. During 

 the third week of January nearly all the snow that was then lying on the ground 

 disappeared. On March 1, 18 inches of snow fell, and on the following day 6 inches 

 more. This came in a very opportune time, protecting the roots of the trees at a 

 critical period of the year. The coldest day of the winter was on February 2, when 

 the temperature fell to 21 '5° F. below zero. 



The snow gradually disappeared after the middle of March, but as there were 

 few warm rains or little rain of any kind, the frost did not leave the ground readily 

 and the spring was backward. The frost was out of the ground enough to use the 

 spade on April 19, although it could still be found in spots for several weeks after- 

 wards. Compared with last year, the opening of spring work was only one day later. 



The weather remained quite cool until May 13. On the 10th and 11th of that 

 month there were four and five degrees of frost respectively, but as there had been 

 little growth up to that time very little injury was done. On May 14 the weather 

 became quite warm, the temperature rising to 8G° F. This was the first day that 

 growth was at all rapid. While this rise in temperatui* was followed again by cool 

 weather, the last week of the month was quite warm, the temperature being 81° F., 82° 

 F., and 83° F., on the 26th, 27th and 28th. No frosts occurred after the 11th. June 

 was a very favourable month for plant growth, their being sufiicient rain to keep- 

 eveiything growing well. Most of the month of July was showery, but there were 

 few storms and the weather, though warm at times, was never hot. August was also 

 a favourable month for plant growth. On the 6th, the temperature was 90° F., and 

 on the 26th, 91° F., these being the hottest days of the month. 



September was an exceptionally fine month, until the thivd week, which was wet 

 the tempe^'ature. as a rule, being mild or warm. There was a light frost on the 19th, 

 but only the melons were injured. The highest temperature of the year occurred on 

 the 2nd, when it rose to 93-8° F. October began with fine weather in much the same 

 way as September had ended, and there was no killing frost until the 17th, when th'- 



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