26 HINTS ON PROFITABLE FRUIT GROWING. 



supply, four times as large, of home-grown fresh fruit, 

 would not be excessive ? whilst nearly all the medical 

 papers are encouraging the consumption of fruit as food 

 continually, so that the cultivation of fruit by cottagers 

 may well be strongly encouraged also. 



The cultivator of small holdings, as a rule, cannot 

 compete with the large market gardeners and farmers 

 in ordinary garden stuff; as potatoes and parsnips, 

 onions and cabbage, may be raised at almost a nominal 

 price by the big men who flood the markets often at 

 ruinous rates, and in fact, nearly all common garden 

 vegetables can be bought cheaper than they can be 

 grown in many districts around London. There is no 

 scope, therefore, for the cottager to produce the ordinarj- 

 garden vegetable for sale, as the cry is nearly everywhere 

 that " market-gardening is overdone." 



In fruit growing, on the other hand, there are several 

 most encouraging features to be considered. The rapidly 

 increasing array of retail shops throughout London, 

 with their tempting displays of tomatoes, oranges, and 

 all sorts of fruit in its season, serves considerably to 

 promote the demand. It is the foreign imports that 

 have induced the retailers hitherto to double the fruit 

 shops in nearly all the leading London streets, during 

 the last four or five years; and they are doing "the 

 running " for the English growers. 



It is the supply produces the demand. These fruit 

 sellers now started, must keep their windows alwaya 

 filled with the most tempting displays they can find. 

 All really good quality will thus find through them a 

 ready outlet; and many of the smaller growers send 

 direct to these fruit shops their more delicate produce. 



The country towns will quickly follow the lead of 



