The Canadian Horticulturi^ 



Vol. XXXIV 



OCTOBER, 1911 



No. 



10 



Cooperation in Ontario 



p. W. Hodgetts, Toronto, Ont., Provincial Director of Horticulture 



CO-OPERATION in fruit growing is 

 appealing strongly to-day to the 

 Ontario farmer. Success has at- 

 tended the efforts of the men at St. 

 Catharines, Simcoe, Forest, and other 

 points in the joint 

 marketing of their 

 fruit products under 

 one manager and in 

 the purchasing of 

 those supplies which 

 are so Jessential to 

 the production of 

 the best quality of 

 fruit. Urgent ap- 

 peals have jbeen 

 made to both the 

 federal and provin- 

 cial departments of agriculture for aid 

 in the organization of local associations, 

 and to-day forty-one of these are at work 

 that will handle this year fruits valued 

 at from three-quarters to one million 

 dollars, besides thousands of dollars' 

 worth of spraying materials, packages, 

 fertilizers, and other materials. The 

 future of co-operation seems brighter 

 than for some years, and with care in the 

 selection of suitable officers and man- 



P. W. Hodgetti 



agers, and a still higher standard of 

 grading than we have yet had, very few 

 failures should result. 



TWO ESSENTIALS 



Two points at least seem to be essen- 

 tial in the proper organization of any 

 farmers' co-operative company. tirst, 

 the selection of the best man possible as 

 business manager and the payment to 

 him of a good living salary ; and second, 

 the growing of high quality fruit that 

 can safely be marketed under the brand 

 of the association. Numerous instances 

 have occurred in Ontario where organi- 

 zations have come to grief on one or 

 other of these points. One company in 

 Southern Ontario, successful the first 

 year, and with splendid prospects before 

 it, changed managers the second season 

 to effect a saving of a few dollars in the 

 salary. To-day the company's packing 

 house is for sale, and co-operation is not 

 very popular. Three small organiza- 

 tions in one of the northern counties 

 came to grief in one year through at- 

 tempting to pack and sell apples from 

 orchards that were neglected, unpruned, 

 unsprayed and generally dilapidated. 



The greatest encouragement to those 



engaged in the promotion of fruit grow- 

 ing in this province is the active interest 

 being taken on all sides by farmers and 

 others in their apple orchards. No pre- 

 vious year in our history has shown such 

 a demand for spraying machinery and 

 spray materials for demonstrations in 

 pruning and spraying and for other in- 

 formation relating to the apple industry. 

 Companies both large and small have 

 been formed to lease and buy apple or- 

 chards already in bearing and to set 

 out young orchards. One of these con- 

 cerns has taken over one hundred and 

 forty thousand bearing apple trees tiom 

 parties who in the past have iar£,eiy 

 neglected their orchards. Farmers them- 

 selves are everywhere leasing their 

 neighbors' orchards where these can be 

 procured on reasonable terms. 



This activity means that during the 

 present season and in coming seasons 

 there will be a tremendous change m the 

 quality of the fruit sent out trom tnis 

 province. With the improvement in the 

 quality naturally follows co-operation in 

 the selling. The expense of securing a 

 high grade apple is naturally much 

 greater than for the low grade product. 



The Box Packing of Fruit in Ontario it Increasing Steadily. Students in a Short Course in Box Packing at the Guelph A. C. are Here Shown. 



