52 Agricultural Journal of Victoria. 



From, the results of sales of Victorian and South Australian apples 

 for the past seven years at Covent Garden, it has been shown con- 

 clusively that the four best varieties for the London market are 

 Cleopatra or New York Pippin, Munro's Favorite or Dunn's Seedling, 

 Jonathan and Esopus Spitzenberg. The latter would command higher 

 prices if they could arrive before the middle of May. After these come 

 Wellingtons or Dumelow's Seedling, Cox's Orange Pippin, Five 

 Crown, Eome Beauty and Newtown Pippin. The latter is one of the 

 highest priced apples exported fi'om the States or Canada. The 

 Baldwin is also a good apple. 



Owing to the cold summer, prices of apples ruled lower during the 

 season 1902, than was anticipated. It is always desirable that all 

 Victorian shipments of apples, pears or grapes should arrive before the 

 beginning of June as French cherries then commence to arrive, and 

 prices of the former are immediately affected, the demand for them also 

 diminishing. 



The lower prices ruling for Tasmanian and Australian apples 

 during May, last year, caused a wide distribution of them through 

 provincial cities. Tasmanian shipments to Liverpool direct enabled 

 supplies to be distributed through Northern cities. 



With regard to temperature during ocean transit 45 degrees should 

 not be exceeded for apples, the best results having been obtained at 

 40 to 42 degrees. 



Pears and Grapes. 



From time to time during the past six years quantities of })ears 

 have been forwarded, the cases, notwithstanding repeated suggestions 

 made, being stowed indiscriminately among the apples carried in the 

 ship's chambers. The result being if the temperature was not low and 

 receiving little or no air circulation, the pears were either partially or 

 altogether rotten on arrival. Those which were landed in good con- 

 dition, as I mentioned repeatedly in my reports, were stowed near the 

 air trunks at the sides of the chamber, where they had a cooler 

 temperature, often 37 degrees or 38 degrees, and could not be heated 

 and over-ripen and decay. Instances were given of the excellent prices 

 realised for good varieties of dessert pears when a few cases arrived 

 sound in this way. In 1899, Vicar of Winklield and Williams' Bon 

 Chretien sold for 19s. 6d. and 24s. 6d. per case, and Clairgeau up to 

 32s. 6d. per case. 



The " Gulf of Siam" pears carried under the Sutherland process, 

 with the exception of a few cases, arrived in good condition, although 

 the consignment by the ''Gulf of Bothnia" previously was a failure. 

 The varieties were Vicar of Winkfield, Clairgeau, Josephine, Napoleon, 

 St. Germain and Kieffer's Hybrid. These sold at auction realised from 

 15s. to 38s. per case. From time to time cases of pears from Adelaide, 

 which happened to arrive in good condition, have made similar prices 

 to Victorian. During the past season Winter Nelis realised up to 22s. 

 per case. Vicars from 12s. to 18s 6d., and one case of St. Germains 

 sold for 30s. 



