THE CANADIAN H0RTICULTUKI8T. 



219 



SUMMER MEETING OF THE FRUIT 



GROWERS' ASSOCIATION OF 



ONTARIO. 



For "Canadian Horticulturist." 



Mr. Editor, — On Monday, August 

 27th, my friend, W. W. Hilborn, and 

 I, boarded the noon train at Watford, 

 for St, Catharines, to attend the sum- 

 mer meeting of above Society. We 

 safely arrived at our destination in the 

 evening of the same day, after a very 

 pleasant transit through an exceedingly 

 fine and promising country in the 

 midst of a Canadian harvest. The 

 weather was exceedingly pleasureable, 

 and the fruit trees through which we 

 passed, though, as a general thing, not 

 loaded with fruit, yet they studded the 

 landscape and added beauty and a 

 charm to the ever-changing scene. It 

 is not possible to travel any consider- 

 able distance into the heart of our coun- 

 try without being convinced of the 

 greatness awaiting it in its coming 

 grandeur of development. 



The following day we spent in the 

 city, and by the assistance of kind 

 friends vLsited many beautiful and 

 charming places. We first called at 

 the private gardens of the Hon. T. R. 

 Merritt, whose gardener, Mr. Cameron, 

 took us under his care, and led us 

 through the varied and beautiful scenes 

 of the garden. Everything was in the 

 best of condition, and commanded our 

 highest admiration. The large and vari- 

 ed beds of gay flowering and foliage 

 plants were perfectly beautiful. In the 

 fruit garden the loaded trees of beauti- 

 ful and well-formed pears and plums, 

 and trellises of grapes, were something 

 to excite our deepest astonishment — 

 ich quantities and such beautiful and 

 nfect specimens. In the grapery the 

 irge antl beautiful clusters of foi*eign 

 L[)es, suspended above us, were some- 

 ling truly admirable. In the lawn 

 le old and beautiful Norway Spruce, 

 klsam Fir, and other ornameaUil 



trees, were exceedingly fine. Such 

 grounds as these are not only the pride 

 of the owner, but the admiration of the 

 people, and a blessing to the country. 



We next visited the home grounds 

 of John Riordon, Esq., whose gardener, 

 Mr. Dunn, also very kindly showed us 

 some wonders of his skill in planting 

 and training. He first took us into 

 the grapery under glass, where fine 

 Black Hamburgs, and luscious Muscats 

 were hanging in enormous clusters over 

 our heads. These beautiful grounds 

 are perfectly charming. The conserva- 

 tory, a large glass structure filled with 

 noble Palms and many other exotics 

 from far southern climes, was one of 

 the most delightful places we had ever 

 seen. The lawn was well supplied with 

 fine old specimen trees of varied habits 

 and foliage, intermixed with beds of 

 the richest color in flowering and foli- 

 age plants. In the fruit garden we 

 were also shown beautiful fruits, all 

 that the heart of man could desire. 



We also visited the nursery grounds 

 and private gardens of D. W. Beadle, 

 Esq., the industrious Secretary of the 

 Ontario Fruit GroweiV Association. 

 These grounds are on the very site 

 where the old St. Catharines nurseries 

 were first established by Dr. Beadle, 

 the venerable father of the present 

 esteemed owner. These admirable 

 grounds are very extensive and well 

 located, and are covered over with trees, 

 plants and flowers of almost every con- 

 ceivable pattern. The soil is admir- 

 ably adapted to the purpose to which 

 it is put, the growth of the trees and 

 the nursery business. 



We afterwards visited the celebrated' 

 Dominion Gardens of A. M. Smith, 

 Esq., whose grounds are so widely 

 known as the birth-place of the Early 

 Canada Strawberry, and the Niagara 

 Raspberry. Here we saw growing, the 

 wonderful Niagara Grape that is now 

 agitating the whole country so much 



