FRUIT EXHIBIT AT HALIFAX. 



Fig. 1684. — Apples at N.S. Provincial Fair 



iy^ r^HE exhibit of fruit at the Nova 

 Scotia Provincial Exhibition, 

 held in Halifax, September 

 23rd to 30th, while not quite 

 so large as that of last year, impressed 

 one as being better in quality and as 

 illustrating better the capabilities of the 

 province along commercial lines. There 

 was a splendid exhibit of the leading 

 sorts of market apples, there being nine- 

 teen entries of Gravensteins, which were 

 magnificent, and the other most popular 

 sorts being equally well represented. 



It is perhaps to be regretted that more 

 prominence was not given to barrels of 

 apples packed for export, since this sub- 

 ject is of so much importance to grow- 

 ers, and anything which can be done to 

 encourage better methods in this res- 

 pect, ought to be done. 



At present the prize offered is only 

 $4, for the best barrel of the different 

 sorts, the fruit to become the property 

 of the Commission, and this is scarcely 

 the cash value of some of the better 

 varieties, when sorted as carefully as 

 these prize barrels have to be. If grow- 

 ers could only be brought to realize how 

 much more valuable a prize they are 

 competing for when they pack a barrel 



of apples for export, we might look for 

 an improvement in the general practice 

 of packing. 



The value of modern methods of cul- 

 ture and spraying was well illustrated 

 by some Burbank plums exhibited by 

 Mr. Ralph S. Eaton, of Kentville. They 

 were almost a third larger than any 

 others of this variety exhibited ; and 

 Prof. John Craig, who acted as judge of 

 the fruit, pronounced them the finest 

 Burbanks he had ever seen. 



Mr. Eaton practises thinning his fruit, 

 which is doubtless in part accountable 

 for the superb character of these plums ; 

 but cultivation, spraying and fertilizing 

 are also largely responsible. If Nova 

 Scotia can grow such plums as these, 

 and if cold storage can be developed 

 sufficiently to land them in perfect con- 

 dition in the London market, there is 

 no reason why this branch of fruit grow- 

 ing should not become of great import- 

 ance commercially. 



Peaches again formed an interesting 

 part of the exhibit, and enough were 

 shown to prove that Nova Scotia can 

 grow them for the home market, though 

 they may never be of commercial value. 

 Some really creditable plates were shown 

 of such sorts as Alexander, Crawford's 

 Early and Hill's Chili. 



A very valuable feature of the exhibi- 

 tion, to those who were fortunate enough 

 to hear it, was a short address given in 

 the Horticultural building by our old 

 friend. Prof. John Craig. After com- 

 plimenting the fruit growers upon the 

 splendid exhibit of fruit, on the merits 

 of which he had just had the pleasure 

 of passing judgment, Prof. Craig called 

 the attention of those present to some 

 of the lessons to be learned from the 

 exhibit. He wished first to impress 

 growers with the importance of raising 



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