CULTIVATION OF HOLDINGS 431 



CULTIVATION OF THE HOLDINGS. 



It is intended that the holdings shall be culti- 

 vated entirely by spade labour, and that a system 

 of market-gardening shall be adopted on the 

 4 acres which are not planted with fruit. The 

 holders will also be encouraged to keep pigs and 

 poultry. The cost of planting 1 acre of fruit is, 

 roughly, about 25. It takes about 200 apples, 

 plums and pears, 600 to 900 bushes of currants, 

 gooseberries and raspberries, and about 2,000 straw- 

 berry plants. The varieties of fruit are being 

 chosen with the view of getting a range of early to 

 late produce. This involves about a dozen different 

 sorts of apples, and two or three kinds of plums, 

 such as the Victoria and the Rivers Heron, a 

 middle variety. 



There will be an expert adviser to supply in- 

 formation as to the best methods of cultivation and 

 the most suitable crops for production. 



One of the new settlers will be a successful 

 Evesham grower who has reported favourably on 

 the suitability of the place for the intensive cultiva- 

 tion practised at Evesham, and it is expected that 

 his experience will be valuable in giving a lead to 

 others. 



The distribution of the produce will be made an 

 object of special attention. A society of the 

 growers will be formed, and the produce will be 

 collected, graded, and distributed as a whole. The 

 Army are already in the position of distributing 



