APPENDIX. 449 



hundreds if not thousands of acres In South Devon, 

 and most probably in other parts of the south coast 

 too, where early potatoes could be grown equally well. 

 But besides the 90,000 tons of early potatoes (over 

 700,000 worth) which are imported to this country, 

 enormous quantities of late potatoes are imported 

 from Holland, Germany, and Belgium ; so that the 

 total imports of potatoes reach from 200,000 to. 450,000 

 tons every year. Moreover, this country imports every 

 year all sorts of green vegetables, for the sum of at 

 least 4,000,000, and for 5,000,000 all sorts of fruit 

 (apart from exotic fruit) ; while thousands of acres lie 

 idle, and the country population is driven to the 

 cities in search of work, without finding it. , . 



Q. FRUIT-CULTURE IN BELGIUM. 



It appears from the Annuaire statistique de la belgique 

 that, out of a cultivated area of 6,443,500 acres, the 

 following areas were given in Belgium, at the time 

 of the last census, to fruit-growing, market-gardening, 

 and culture under glass: Orchards, 117,600 acres; 

 market-gardens, 103,460 acres ; vineries, 173 acres 

 (increased since) ; growing of trees for afforestation, 

 gardens, and orchards, 7,475 acres ; potatoes, 456,000 

 acres. Consequently, Belgium is able to export every 

 year about 250,000 worth more vegetables, and nearly 

 500,000 worth more fruit, than she imports. As to the 

 vineries, the land of _ the communes of Hoeylart and 

 Overyssche near Brussels is almost entirely covered with 

 glass, and the exports of home-grown grapes attained, 

 in 1910, 6,800 tons, in addition to 34,000 tons of other 

 home-grown fruit. Besides, nearly 3,000 acres in the 

 environs of Ghent are covered with horticultural estab- 

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