56 



THE CANADIAN HORTICULTURIST 



Floral Bditloo 



DOMINION FRUIT CONFERENCE 



THE founding of a Canadian Horticul- 

 tural Council, the adoption of new 

 grade names for apples in boxes, and 

 the raising of grade standards, the changing 

 of sizes for berry boxes, recommendations 

 for the improvement of transportation 

 methods and facilities and in the manufac- 

 turing of jams and jellies, and a score of 

 other important recommendations and de- 

 cisions, characterized the big Dominion 

 Fruit Conference at Ottawa, Feb. 22 to 

 24. From beginning to end, it was a busi- 

 ness conference. The results in many par- 

 ticulars are expected to revolutionize the 

 fruit industry of Canada. While the doings 

 were not decisive in changing existing 

 practices and legislation, they being merely 

 suggestive or advisory at the time, the 

 recommendations respecting transportation 

 methods, for instance, are expected to 

 bring about important changes for the 

 better, and the recommendations respecting 

 grading,' packing, packages and other legis- 

 lative concerns, are practically certain of 

 becoming law. 



Action featured every problem discussed. 

 No time was wasted. That so much was 

 accomplished in such short time was due 

 partly to the apparent advance preparation 

 on the part of the delegates, who, further- 

 more, were sympathetic of each other's 

 viewpoints, and in large measure to the 

 masterly fashion in which the sessions 

 were handled by the chairman. Fruit Com- 

 missioner C. W. Baxter. 



At the opening session, Mr. Baxter em- 

 phasized the innovation of including this 

 time representatives of the allied interests, 

 as well as of the fruit growers, instead of 

 the latter alone, as formerly. This was the 

 sixth conference of the kind, others having 

 been held In 1896, 1906, 1912, 1914 and 1918. 

 While past conferences had been respon- 

 sible for much important legislation respect- 

 ing fruit marketing, the chairman looked 

 for even greater advances from this gather- 

 ing. Dr. J. H. Grisdale, Deputy Minister of 

 Agriculture, in an address of welcome, 

 lauded the spirit of co-operation that pre- 

 vailed now, as never before, among the- 

 fruit provinces, associations and the grow- 

 ers themselves, and between the Fruit 

 Branch and all those fruit factors. 



Address by Hon. Mr. Motherwell. 



At a banquet tendered by the Department 

 of Agriculture to delegates and others in 

 attendance, Hon. W. R. Motherwell, Minis- 

 ter of Agriculture, stressed the importance 

 of organization. No feature in society was 

 more helpful to a government. The fruit 

 and other horticultural interests should be 

 centralized nationally along lines similar 

 to those of the National Dairy Council. 

 Standardization of packages was another 

 matter that required particular attention. 



Speaking on cold storage, Mr. Motherwell 

 referred to the Cold Storage Act, sponsored 

 by the late Hon Sydney Fisher, which pro- 

 vided for a bonus of 30 per cent, to com- 

 panies and associations that desired such 

 assistance for the erection of such plants, 

 and to its being amended by the Borden 

 government to being applicable only to 

 municipalities. For economy, the present 

 government might have to follow its pre- 

 decessors. He hoped to live long enough to 

 see a reversion to the old Act. With proper 

 control, cold storage was one of the great- 

 est blessings of the age. 



Throughout the three days, the topics 

 dealt with in discussion and resolution con- 

 cerned chiefly fruit by-products, fruit 

 statistic, grade names and grade defini- 

 tions for apples and other fruits, the stan- 

 dardization of packages for berries, trans- 

 portation, cold storage, fumigation, and the 

 formation of a Canadian Horticultural 

 Council. Lack of space prevents reporting 

 the discussions in detail. The important 

 groups of resolutions and decisions are 

 given under separate headings on this and 

 the following pages. Miscellaneous resolu- 

 tions and other matters were as follows: 



"Fruit Statistics" was dealt with by Er- 

 nest H. Godfrey, of the Dominion Bureatj 

 of Statistics. The work and the plans of « 

 the bureau were outlined. 



"Fumigation of Nursery Stock" was dis- 

 cussed by Mr. MacLaine, of the Entomolcg- 

 ical Branch, and others. Some of the 

 delegates contended that fumigation injured 

 the vitality of trees. No action was taken. 

 Miscellaneous Resolutions. 

 A tariff resolution requested of the 

 Federal Government that, in the event of 

 any material change in the customs regu- 

 lations pertaining to the entrance into 

 Canada of foreign fruits and vegetables, no 

 change be made in the regulations until the 

 various producing interests have had' an 



opportunity of presenting their views to the 

 Government in connection therewith. 



The Dominion Government was urged to 

 restore the aid previously granted toward 

 the erection of cold storage plants under 

 the Cold Storage Act, of 1907, which was 

 rescinded by Order-in-Council in May, 1919, 

 except as it applied to municipal cold stor- 

 age. A bureau of markets, under the De- 

 partment of Agriculture, also was requested. 

 Complimentary resolutions were extended 

 to Hon. W. R. Motherwell. Minister of 

 Agriculture, for making the conference 

 possible, and to C. W. Baxter, Fruit Com- 

 missioner, for the able and impartial man- 

 ner in which he conducted the proceedings. 

 Resolutions Rejected. 

 Quebec representatives requested the in- 

 clusion of windfall apples among the grades 

 that may be marketed in closed packages. 

 At present there are three grades, number 

 ones, twos and threes, all of which must con- 

 sist of sound fruit. Sod culture is universal 

 in Quebec, and good prices could be secured 

 if the practice was permitted. The resolu- 

 tion was lost. 



British Columbia asked for a grade defin- 

 ition for apples in crates, and that that 

 Province be permitted to continue the use 

 of the two-fifths hallock for berries. Lose. 

 ' A resolution to provide for inspection of 

 apples at points of shipment and that such 

 inspection be accepted as final, was lost. 



Proposals to standardize packages for 

 melons were not adopted. It was thought 

 wiser to experiment with crates for an- 

 other season before making definite recom- 

 mendations. 



Transportation Recommendations 



A COMMITTEE appointed by the Con- 

 ference to report on transportation 

 matters pointed out, through its chair- 

 man, W. H. Bunting, St. Catharines, that 

 the carload fruit movement within Canada 

 runs into several thousand cars, and repre- 

 sents a very large revenue-producing traffic 

 for the railway and express companies. To 

 improve transportation conditions, a number 

 of important changes were necessary, as 

 follows: The number of unloading points 

 should be increased for carload express 

 shipments; additional destinations and 

 routings should be arranged; there should 

 be no difference in the charges for Ice sup- 

 plied, whether for express or freight ship- 

 ments, and no difference in switching and 

 demurrage charge, as between express and 

 freight cars, the special fruit tariffs should 

 cover all varieties of fruits, both carload 

 and less carload; all types of cars in the 

 fruit service should be made suitable for 

 the traffic, and a sufficient supply provided 

 to render the use of unsuitable cars un- 

 necessary. Storage-in-transit privileges for 

 certain movements were suggested. These 

 recommendations were adopted. 

 Resolutions Adopted. 



A number of important resolutions that 

 this committee presented were adopted 

 unanimously. Space permits their publica- 

 tion only in brief. 



The Conference went on record as oppos- 

 ed to any increase in the classification of 

 fruits and vegetables by the railway com- 

 panies, but looked for a readjustment and 

 reduction. A substantial reduction in 

 freight rates for fruits and vegetables was 

 asked in a resolution that pointed out that 

 the present high rates were working a 

 serious hardship to these industries. 



Whereas, there is a growing necessity 

 for wider distribution of Canadian fruits, 

 it was resolved also that the carrying 



companies be requested to establish express 

 carload commodity rates from producing 

 centres to distributing points in local terri- 

 tory, also from British Columbia and On- 

 tario points to the various large United 

 States cities and intermediate points; 

 further, that the unloading in transit privi- 

 lege apply the same as on cars moving 

 from American territory to Canada. 



Types of Cars — Minimum Weight. 



Another resolution asked that the Fruit 

 Branch continue and extend its experimental 

 work in connection with best types of 

 cars for carrying fruit, and the best 

 methods of loading. A reduction was re- 

 commended in minimum weights, from 20,- 

 000 pounds to 17,000 pounds, for large ex- 

 press refrigerators, and 15,000 pounds for 

 smaller cars on both domestic and export 

 traffic. The railway companies will be ask- 

 ed to extend the carriers' protective ser- 

 vice to and from all points in Canada at 

 a reasonable charge, which charge shall be 

 calculated on the cost of the insurance 

 service That ventilated and refrigerator 

 cars only are the proper equipment for the 

 safe movement of fruit, was contended in 

 a resolution recommending that the Do- 

 minion Atlantic Railway be asked to discon- 

 tinue its additional cj||iarge for refrigerator 

 cars, and thereby place all shippers on an 

 equal basis. 



The Conference will ask the express 

 companies to restore the privilege, enjoyed 

 for 20 years by the fruit shippers of the 

 Niagara district, until last year, of a car- 

 load express rate loaded by one shipper for 

 distribution to various points in distant 

 markets, and to extend the privilege to all 

 parts of the Dominion, or, failing that, to 

 Issue a special rate for such shipments sub- 

 stantially lower than the rate for less than 

 carload shipments. 



