164 THE CANADIAN HORTICULTURIST. 



afraid to launch out lest tliey should come to trouble. With the view 

 of further testing this matter, we planted out, a year ago last spring, a 

 young peach orchard of about one hundred and thirty trees, embracing 

 some fifteen choice American and Canadian sorts. These young trees 

 are doing remarkably well, and promise before long to show us samples 

 of their beautiful luscious fruits. When that time arrives we hope 

 probably to be in a far better position to deal with the question at the 

 head of this paper. 



But to present duty ! I gave you to understand some time ago 

 that we have found our home-grown seedlings to be the most profitable 

 in our markets, and this will at once appear from the following 

 considerations: Firstly, the trees ffre habitually hardier and persistently 

 fruitful. They bear annually large and regular crops of fine flavored 

 and showy fruit, so that we can afford to sell them cheap, and this 

 exactly suits the calibre of many of our customers. If we should go 

 into market with a basket of golden Crawfords, almost certainly the 

 customer would wistfully look at tliem, take one in his hands and 

 feel of it, and ask, "What is the price?" When being told, he would 

 shrug his shoulders with an unmistakable significance and silently 

 walk away. But if told to "hold on, here is a basket that you can 

 have for half that figure," he would stop, and his calculations would 

 at once be aroused. We could easily sell ten baskets of these cheap 

 peaches while we are selling one basket of the richer but dearer ones. * 

 It is only the monied customer, the man of large means, who considers 

 worth of first importance, and gratifies his taste at any expense, to 

 whom we dare show our best and most valuable peaches. Well, you 

 ask, why" can you not sell Crawfords as cheap as you can seedlings ? 

 Oh! here is the very pith of the question. Every tree will have, say, 

 four bushels of seedlings, while those of Crawfords will have only one, 

 so that four times the trees and four times the land mu§t be employed 

 for their production — at least tliis is our experience. 



But, secondly, we have found no improved variety that will stand 

 the test of our variable climate, and consequently a profitable cropper. 

 It is true we lose no peach wood, but by some means or other the 

 blossoms are rendered fruitless, and our hopes are frustrated. This 

 occurs either during the winter, when the germ is perished in the bud, 

 or in the spring, at or just after the time of blossoming. Just at that 

 particular period we invariably have cold, chilly, perishing winds. 



