76 FRUITS 



other parts of the coastal plain. In Queensland good grapes 

 are produced near Brisbane, but the best -wine-grapes grow 

 at Roina, in the south of the state, on the western slopes of 

 the Dividing Range. In Western Australia the south-western 

 corner, especially the valley of the River Swan, is the chief 

 grape-producing district. 



In the Union of South Africa, the south-western district 

 (Stellenbosch and Paarl) produces excellent raisins and some 

 wine. 



Nearly all the grapes which Canada produces are grown in 

 the Lake Peninsula, especially at the western end of Lake 

 Ontario ; but though there are many thousand acres under 

 vines at present, there are not enough grapes for export. 



Cyprus also exports wine and raisins. 



PEACHES. The original home of the peach is China, but 

 it was introduced into Europe from Persia, hence it is called 

 Aurydalus Persica. It was not known to the Greeks and 

 Romans before the first century of our era. 



The peach-tree resembles the almond in many ways ; it 

 bears the same exquisitely beautiful pink flowers, but whereas 

 the peach-stone is covered with a delicious juicy pulp, the 

 almond has a thin tough skin and it is the kernel inside the 

 stone (the nut) which is eaten. 



In England, peaches, like grapes, will ripen out of doors in 

 sheltered sunny positions in favourable seasons, but for the 

 most part we grow them under glass. 



Of those we import, the largest number come from France, 

 but many parts of the empire have a soil and climate exactly 

 suited to them, and there is every reason to suppose that their 

 cultivation will be greatly extended in the future. 



In the Cape Province of South Africa the orchards are in 

 the south-west, and there is a considerable export. 



In Canada the bulk of the peaches produced are grown in 

 the Lake Peninsula. Near Hamilton, on the shores of Lake 

 Ontario, there is a sandy strip of land covered with peach 

 orchards, and in the spring-time when the trees are in flower 



