The Canadian Horticulturist. 297 



trains run on passenger time on the American roads, to their great cities, and 

 why should we not have a similar consideration ? 



GLUTTED MARKETS. 



The glut of summer apples and early peaches during this season of 1891 

 has somewhat discouraged our high hopes with regard to the profits of growins; 

 them. Between two and three thousand baskets of magnificent Red Astrachans 

 seemed prospectively to be a mine of wealth, but when beautiful fancy apples 

 came to our Canadian cities in car loads from the Hudson River district and 

 other fruit growing centres of the United States, our markets were so completely 

 blocked that it was difficult to find a profitable sale for even extra fine stock. 



Notwithstanding this, the Red Astrachan, in our opinion, cannot be sur- 

 passed as a summer market apple. If each specimen is gathered just at its 

 highest state of perfection, surely no apple can surpass it for beauty, and, hand- 

 ling it in this way, we were able to dispose of the crop at fair prices, even during 

 such an unfavorable season as this one. 



The Niagara District Fruit Growers are helping the fruit business of Ontario 

 by opening up trade with Winnipeg, and, through an arrangement with the 

 Canadian Pacific Railway, have shipped car loads of summer apples and other 

 stock to that city, where they are selling at remunerative prices. The great 

 North-West may yet prove to be a fine market for our early fruits. 



Good use may be made of the second-class grade of early apples, which are 

 never fit for the market, in the way of food for stock. A few quarts of them may 

 be cut in pieces and fed daily to each cow. She will relish them highly and her 

 flow of milk will be much increased thereby. The horses, too, will enjoy them 

 as an addition to the daily ration and will eat their other food with greater relish. 

 The pigs which are shut up in small yards should by all means have a share, and 

 if the sheep and hogs have the run of the orchard to pick up the fallen fruit — 

 which is almost always unfit for sale — the result, in flesh, will be highly satis- 

 factory. 



What shall we say of the early peaches, such as Early Canada, Alexander, 

 Hale's Early, etc., which, notwithstanding their fair exterior, never seem to ripen 

 perfectly and so soon begin to decay ? No wonder the prices fell to forty cents 

 a basket, a figure very little above that which was being paid us for extra fancy 

 Red Astrachans. The lesson seems to be to plant no early peach in any quan- 

 tity, unless it be the Early Rivers, which is truly a first-class peach and meets 

 with much favor in our markets. 



The Petite Marguerite Pear has borne with us this year for the first time and 

 commends itself as worthy of some attention from growers. It is a delicious 

 dessert pear of medium size, greenish yellow skin with brownish red cheek ; 

 ripening about the end of August, just in advance of the Bartlett. The flesh is 

 fine, melting, juicy and of the highest quality. Its color, however, is not the 

 best to make it a fancy market pear. 



