^6 The Canadian Horticulturist. 



agency of the Hon. John Carling, who introduced a bill into the Ontario 

 Legislature for a grant of $500 ; and now he was endeavoring to give the 

 same kind of encouragement to fruit growers in a broader way through this 

 convention and through the experimental farms. 



One of the most important ends in view in the conduct of these farms 

 was the testing of new fruits. He did not believe that many of the Russian 

 fruits would be of value in those regions where the best varieties are already 

 found to do well ; but where these fail, the Russians would be found to be 

 of the greatest value. In small fruits, also, he was confident that many 

 kinds now being tried at the farms would prove of great excellence. 



Fruits may be grown in many parts where now they are supposed to 

 fail. Apples can be grown in many other valleys in Nova Scotia besides the 

 Annapolis valley, and many varieties of fruits which are supposed to fail in 

 the vicinity of Ottawa, will succeed. In the North-West even where the 

 Duchess failed, he believed there would be found varieties of Russian or 

 other origin, which would grow and give the inhabitants the successive fruits 

 they so much need. 



He had once had a prejudice against the quality of British Columbia 

 apples, but on testing such varieties as the Fameuse, Spitzenburg and 

 other well known varieties, he had found that the quality was little behind 

 that of Ontario apples, and, in size, they far exceeded them. The Spitzen- 

 burg, for instance, in British Columbia was twice the size of the Ontario 

 sample, the Russet half as large again and so on. - He had never seen pear, 

 plum and cherry trees load, as they do there, and the pear blight and plum 

 knot were, so far, unknown obstacles in the way of the fruit-grower. With 

 such opportunities, he believed that very soon British Columbia would cease 

 to import and instead begin to export many kinds of fruit. 



During the first evening there was a very full house, it being a united 

 meeting of dairymen and fruit-growers to consider the important subject of 

 cheap, careful and rapid transportation of our products to home and foreign 

 markets. This subject was opened by Mr. A. McD. Allan, who in a clear 

 and unreserved manner stated the many grievances of the shipper against 

 the steamboat and railway companies. We will give an outline of this 

 address in our next next number. 



