The Canadian Horticulturist. 205 



THE FRUIT PROSPECTS. 



A grievous change has come over the fruit prospects for the summer and 

 fall of the current season. During the blooming season, the hopes of the fruit 

 grower were highly exalted in anticipation of an enormous crop. Never were 

 our apple trees fuller of bloom, and the same is true of the pear and cherry. 

 The even year is usually the bearing year with the greater portion of orchards 

 in Ontario, and it was only fair to suppose that this season would have been 

 unprecedented in a prodigious yield. The abundant rains, however, which fell 

 during the month of May appear to have washed out the pollen from the 

 blossoms and so caused imperfect fertilization. More than this, it favored the 

 development of fungi and blight of every kind. As a result, the young fruit 

 was no sooner formed than it fell wholesale from the trees, and after a few days, 

 it was evident that, instead of a very abundant crop of apples, pears and 

 cherries, there would be, in many sections, the lightest crop known for years. 



Along the line of the Great Western Railway, in Southern Ontario, 

 the Baldwin has retained its fruit better than most other varieties ; the Rox- 

 bury and Golden Russets are fair, and the same may be said of the Gravenstein 

 s-nd King, but the Greening, which is one of the most largely planted varieties, 

 is almost a total failure, and so is the Spy, the Early Harvest, the Red Astracan, 

 and many other varieties. This is so at Maplehurst and also in a greater por- 

 tion of Southern Ontario. 



The pear crop is almost a failure. The Bartlett particularly is either barren 

 of fruit, or what fruit remains on the trees is so sadly blackened with fusic- 

 ladium, that it will scarcely be fit for market. We have sprayed carefully 

 with the Bordeaux mixture, but not until the scab had appeared. We hope, 

 however, that it may check further progress of this evil. 



The English cherries are a complete failure. There will be a few Knight's 

 Early Black, and a few Black Eagle, but the trees of nearly every other variety 

 have shed their fruit. 



The plums have set remarkably heavy, but in many localities the monilia, 

 or fruit rot, has set in so severely as to threaten the entire loss of the crop. 



The leaf curl has been very bad upon the peach, and, as a result, the peach 

 crop will be very considerably thinned. 



Small fruits and grapes, on the other hand, are very promising. Indeed, 

 should we have exemption from the mildew, in our orchards, there will be a 

 most prodigious crop of grapes. Encouraging prospects lie before us with 

 regard to raspberries, currants, gooseberries and other small fruits. It is pos- 

 sible that the abundance of these may help the disappointed fruit grower in 

 meeting at least his needful expenses in the care of his property, even though 

 it leaves him no balance in the bank. 



The following are a few notes from letters received from various counties 

 concerning the prospects : 



