NOTES AND COMMENTS. 



15 



This year he had made a shipment to 

 Great Britain, and had received as high as 

 6s. a bushel box for them, which was quite 

 satisfactory. For the home markets there 

 seems to be very little money in growing 

 tomatoes unless they are very early. Many 

 growers make contracts with the canning 

 factories for their crops, with permission to 

 ship the early ripe fruit, up to a certain 

 date, after which all are to go to the fac- 

 tory, which is a very fair bargain. The 

 contract price so far has been 20 cents a 

 bushel, but, owing to the advance in the 

 canned goods, the factories in the Niagara 

 district are already offering 25 cents a bushel 

 for the crop in 1903. This should pay the 

 grower, when one considers that there is no 

 commission, baskets or express charges to 

 pay. 



APRICOT AND OTHER FRUIT PULP. 



Sir,— In consequence of an enquiry which 

 I made £S to why apricots were not grown more 

 extensively in Canada, Professor Saunders sent 

 me last Jane a letter containing an extract from a 

 report which you had made on the subjt ct which 

 terminated with the statement tha.t you were con- 

 ducting further experiments 



Mr. MacKinnon, Chief of Fruit Division, was 

 here a couple of days ago. and in the course of 

 conversation he mention^.d also that he had during 

 his visit here been struck with the large number of 

 apricots, and how advantagtoui to Canadian fruit 

 growers the increased production of this fruit would 

 be. You are aware that apricots are imported just 

 as fresh fruit, also as pulp for jim making, dried 

 and canned. 



I shall be interested I0 learn the results of your 

 further experiments, and this is my reason for 

 writing to you. 



Harrison Weir, 

 Curator Canadian Section Imperial Institute, 

 London, England. 



At Maplehurst we have been trying to 

 grow apricots on our sandy loam for nine 

 years past. We planted every variety of- 

 fered by the nurseries, but have had no 

 fruit to speak of all these years. One ex- 

 planation seems to be their early blossom 

 ing, which exposes them to injury from 

 spring frosts ; and another is the ravages of 

 the curculio, which usually causes all their 

 fruit to drop before maturity. About twelve 



years ago we planted a dozen Russian apri- 

 cots, but every one has proved worthless. 



Unless therefore the soil or climatic con- 

 ditions elsewhere bring about results differ- 

 ent from ours at Maplehurst, we can en- 

 courage no one to undertake apricot grow- 

 ing for profit. 



If there were a demand at paying prices 

 for peach or raspberry pulp we could see 

 business ahead, but experiments already 

 tried by a committee of our Association of 

 which Mr. Boulter, of the Picton Canning 

 Factory, was the chief experimenter, dis- 

 courage that enterprise, because the prices 

 were not remunerative. 



California is undertaking the export of all 

 kinds of fruit pulp in rectangular bricks 

 made by " boiling down the fruit pulp to a 

 sugar until the desired consistency is reached 

 when the mixture is poured into pans, and 

 permitted to dry slowly for ten hours," being 

 eventually cut in bricks and done up in 

 waxed tissue paper. Strawberry pulp in 

 cans is much in demand for flavoring of ices 

 and soda water. 



FRUIT INSPECTOR'S REPORT. 



I^HE Fruit Division at Ottawa is render- 

 ing good service to fruit growers by 

 reporting to them upon the sales in Great 

 Britain, and upon its condition on arrival- 

 For example we have just received following, 

 dated Glasgow, Nov. 17th, regarding fruit 

 ex SS. Lakonia : 



'* H. Gordon Ball, Niagara, Ontario. — 15 

 cases King Pippins. These were without 

 exception the most perfect and finest lot of 

 apples which have come here this season ; 

 every apple was wrapped separately in paper, 

 and each case was perfection from top to 

 bottom. Unfortunately, the lids of the cases 

 were only of }i inch wood, which allowed of 

 easy access to the contents. It seemed 

 incredible that the packer of such apples 

 should send the boxes away with such poor 

 lids." 



