The Canadian Horticulturist. 



i8i 



reports are made, except from a few 

 favored localities, such as those 

 sheltered by the Niajj^ara escarpment. 

 One of these is the neighbourhood 

 of Grimsby, where in a narrow 

 strip of land between the " mountain " 

 and the lake, we are able to report 

 an almost entire immunity from the 

 frost. The young tips of the grape 

 vines w^ere touched, but not the fruit 

 bunches, potatoes were very little 

 hurt, and even corn escaped being 

 cut down, except in some few places. 

 Some cherries are dropping, but not 

 enough to prevent our having a good 

 crop. Pears are very scant, having 

 set poorly. Apples bid fair to be a 

 good average as will be seen from 

 Mr. Pettit's report below. One singu- 

 lar thing about the apple crop is 

 that the Greenings have changed 

 their bearing from the even to the 

 odd year, and thus have wisely 

 parted company with the Baldwins, 

 which are scarcely bearing at all this 

 year. Another is that the King 

 apple trees are this year loaded as 

 heavily as that prodigious bearer the 

 Greening, which is not at all consis- 

 tent with its previous record of 

 scanty crops. 



In Western New York, according 

 to the latest reports, plums, pears, 

 peaches and grapes are almost 

 totally destroyed, cherries are much 

 damaged, except the Biggareaus, 

 and even the apple crop has suffered 

 very seriously. 



Altogether from the reports pub- 

 lished below, and from the accounts 

 received from other sources, it would 

 appear that those who are fortunate 

 enough to have a crop of fruit this 

 year, will do unusually well, for the 

 supply must be far below the average. 



The outlook in Great Britain is 

 also quite poqr for the British fruit 

 grower. Both " The Garden " and 

 " The Gardeners' Chronicle " report 

 that the apples have set very poorly, 

 and that the prospect now is for a 

 very light crop. We will be cautious 

 about shipping heavily to Britain 

 after last year's exparience, yet 

 means of transporation are becoming 

 so easy that any advance of price in 

 the foreign market soon affects our 

 home markets. 



Our readers will be interested in 

 the following reports from prominent 

 growers in Ontario : — 



Oxford County. 



Sir, — Your card iiKjuiring as to fruit pros- 

 pects, to hand .Saturday evening. Ai>ple8, 

 pears, jilunis, and grapes are practically des- 

 troyed by the late spvere frost. Tliere are yet 

 a few apples hanging tn the branches but I 

 think there is but little doubt that these will 

 fall shortly. There will be no cherries here. 

 The black knot has destroyed nearly all the 

 trees in the district, and the fmst took the very 

 little fruit on the few branches iii.t totally des- 

 troyed by the knot. In stra\vl)erries, Cres- 

 cents, and a few other hardy varieties, will be 

 a fair croj). Sharpless, and other large varie- 

 ties will not i)roduce more than from one-third 

 to a one-half crop. In currants, blacks will 

 not be more than a half ci ,p, White (irape is 

 perhaps a little better, Red Dutch will produce 

 nearly a full crop, the other red varieties from 

 oiie-half to a two-third crop. Gooseberries 

 will be nearly or quite a full crop. In Rasp- 

 berries, Cuthberts and (ireggs promise an 

 enormous cro]». Some of the earlier varieties 

 were somewhat injured bv the frost already 

 referred to of the 2!lth of" May. In flowers, 

 roses, (which up to the 2'.»th jproinised an abun- 

 dant crop) will now produce but a Very sniall 

 first crop of bloom. — Fhed MlTCHKLL,/»(H(rAiyi. 



■ Lincoln County. 



Sir, — In reference to the prosjiects of the 

 fruit crop in this section of Ontario, ojiinions 

 differ widely, just in iirojxirtion to the extent 

 of damage causefl by the late frost. Well mav 

 one give expression to his feelings of despair 

 when he looks over a fine patch of strawlterries, 

 that told him a few davs before to lay by a 

 good stock of baskets ami crates, and now to 

 find them almost worthless ; or to see a fine 

 vineyard, nicely cultivated and trained to the 

 trellises, with the foliage destroyed and the 

 berries drying up and falling off. Happily, 

 however, this unfortunate state of affairs is not 

 general, some escaping ; those near the moun- 



