290 



THE CANADIAN HORTICULTURIST. 



Should our Farmers Raise More 

 Fruit ? 



D. JAMES, LANGSTAPF, ONT. 



WHETHER or not the average farmer 

 should raise more fruit depends 

 largely on his individual circumstances. If 

 a man has a fair sized farm and not much 

 help of his own, with little prospect for se- 

 curing any, most decidedly it would not pay 

 him to raise more fruit. The care, the har- 

 vesting and the marketing would interfere 

 with farm work and loss be sure to follow. 



I believe in fruit and plenty of it for the 

 farmer, but not one farmer in 20 is quali- 

 fied or has suitable appliances to carry on so 

 many branches of agriculture and horticul- 

 ture. If a man has help or prospect of help, 

 and a small farm, or can get help from a 

 near town or village, lie may well raise more 

 fruit, but paying $1.25 to $1.50 a day and 

 board, or $30 per month with board for 

 eight months, which many pay, is too much. 



where; profits go. 



There is a prospect for a demand for fruit 

 in the northwest, but the railroads will ab- 

 sorb the profits in freight charges. 



Sections of the country that are extra well 

 adapted for fruit should be given up to that 

 industry. Spraying could be done more 

 cheaply, the marketing could be better at- 

 tended to, the buyers would know where to 

 go, and better rates in freight might be pro- 

 cured. 



I believe in mixed farming, but there is 

 danger of getting it too much mixed. It is 

 nice to have plenty of honey and strawber- 

 ries on the farm, but the farmer who is go- 

 ing to be successful with either one must not 

 allow seeding or harvesting or threshing or 

 corn cutting or root hauling to interfere 

 with the care of his fruit. Every farmer 

 should have plenty of fruit for his own use 

 and some to spare ; but if he goes further he 

 should first count the cost. 



Does Cultivation Promote Scab ? 



IN the opinion of Mr. A. W. Peart, of 

 Burlington, clean cultivation in the or- 

 chard has a tendency to promote scab. " It 

 is my belief," said Mr. Peart to The Horti- 

 culturist, " there has been too much clean 

 cultivation. I have been keeping my or- 

 chard cultivated for 15 years. 



*' If anything green is on the soil it has a 

 neutralizing efifect on vapors arising from 

 the soil, which tend to promote scab. I 

 think that the finest lot of apples sent to the 

 old country last year came from an orchard 

 which had been in oats. I firmly believe 

 that clean cultivation promotes the scab." 



Winter Killing of Pear Trees 



PROF. H. I.. HUTT, ONT. AGRI. COLLEGE, 

 GUELPH. 



T\vo'or three years ago I set out a few hun- 

 dred pear trees. Up to the present they have 

 done very nicely, but this year there seems to 

 be a blight t.. Lacking and killing them. The 

 leaves curl up and gradually turn black, and 

 shortly the whole tree dies. I will be very 

 much obliged if you can give me any receipt 

 for spraying that will counteract this. — (C. C, 

 Simcoe, Ont. 



The dying of your pear trees is probably 

 due to winter killing, the same as that of 

 plum trees. The past winter has been one 

 of the most trying experienced in many 

 years, and reports are coming in from all 

 over the country that pears, plums, and even 

 tender varieties of apples, have been serious- 

 ly winter injured. 



In many cases the killing has not been 

 outright, and the trees did not show the in- 

 jury at first except in the blackened condi- 

 tion of the wood, which may have been 

 noticed at pruning time, but now that the 

 foliage should be in good condition the trees 

 are showing lack of vigor and many of them 

 will succumb before the end of the season. 

 The experience of last winter should teach 

 us many valuable lessons as to what are the 

 " iron clad " varieties. 



