FR UIT C UL TURE. 1 1 9 



tioued, apples and pears, cherries, and citrus fruits in favourable 

 situations do well, tliougli the quality of the poinaceous fruits is n(jt 

 equal to that of the same fruits when grown in our table-land districts, 

 and the citrus fruits are inferior to those grown in more suitable 

 situations ; where cherries will grow they are usually very early and 

 of large size, but are, as a rule, inferior to the same fruit grown in the 

 colder districts. 



Our dry western country also grows good fruit, but here its suc- 

 cessful culture depends largely on having water available for imgation 

 when necessary. With irrigation on suitable land, apricots, peaches, 

 almonds, figs, grapes, olives, oranges, and lemons can be grown to great 

 perfection, those varieties of deciduous fruits that dry well being the 

 most suitable. Citrus fruits do well, and produce fruit of exceptional 

 quality ; in fact, I question if finer citrus fruits were ever grown or 

 seen in Australia than the collection of citrus fruits grown by Lord 

 Ranfurly at Old Mildura and exhibited in Melbourne at the Mildura 

 Citrus Fair held during August, 1895. Though Old Mildura is not in 

 New South Wales, it is only separated from it by the river Murray, 

 and we have many places in our western country that are capable of 

 producing citrus fruits equal to those grown at Old Mildura. 



As artesian water has now been found over a large portion of our 

 western country, and as there is every reason to believe that the supply 

 is practically inexhaustible it is impossible to say to what extent fruit- 

 culture may be carried by its use. This district contains immense 

 areas of perfect fruit soils that are easily irrigated as they possess 

 good natural drainage, and respond well to the application of water 

 when it is properly and judiciously applied. Experimental fruit- 

 culture is now being carried out by the Department of Agriculture at 

 Pera Bore, near Bourke, with every prospect of success, and in my 

 opinion there is practically no limit to the quantity of fruit that this 

 district is capable of producing under a combined system of irrigation 

 and thorough cultivation. 



I have now dealt with all the different parts of the Colony, and have 

 endeavoured to show that owing to the wide range of climate a very 

 large number of fruits can be grown here successfully. I have also 

 endeavoured to show the class of fruit that are best adapted to the 

 different districts, and to give some slight idea of the capabilities and 

 possibilities of the Colony as a fruit-producing country. 



In the early days of the Colony, fruit-culture was looked upon more 

 as a hobby of the rich than as an industry suitable to the Colony and 

 capable of supporting a large number of persons, the soil and climate 

 of the first settled districts being considered unsuitable for_ fruit- 

 growing. The trees planted, however, did so well that the cultivation 

 of fruit soon increased largely in and around the older settled districts 

 of Cumberland, with the result that the industry often turned out tt) 

 be a very profitable one, and many of the growers became comparatively 

 wealthy men, as the demand for the fruit was in excess of the supply, 

 and the prices obtained were consequently highly remunerative. The 

 fruit trade remained in this condition until some ten years ago, since 

 when the area under fruit-trees has been very largely increased, and 

 the production of some kinds of fruit is now in excess of the demand, 



