1897] Fruit Growing in Canada. 81 



from the ripening of an inferior and compound ovary, with five 

 carpels, orginally free. It is wrapped like the fruit of the rose by 

 an expansion of the floral receptacle, This covering becomes 

 fleshy and succulent like the ovary with which it is joined, of 

 which the endocarp alone lining the hollows of the five cells is 

 thin and cartilagenous. The endocarp, as Figuier points out, 

 forms that part which sticks out between the teeth, when we eat 

 an apple. In the case of the orange we have a cnrions modifi- 

 cation. The external yellow skin represents the epicarp ; the 

 white spongy matter, the mesocarp ; the thin membrane lining 

 the quarters, the "endocarp, while the edible part exists as an 

 accessory to the pericarp. .Turning to the drupes, the peach, 

 cherry and plum result from the ripening of a superior ovary. 

 We find first, in the waxy skin of the plum, the epicarp ; in the 

 pulpy succulent flesh, the mesocarp, and in the woody kernels, 

 the endocarp. A knowledge of the nature of each fruit, the con- 

 ditions surrounding the development of its acids and aromatic 

 flavours is essential to their proper and satisfactory preservation. 

 This touches the broader and commercial economics of the 

 industry. 



FRUIT DISTRICTS OE CANADA.— MARITIME PROVINCES. 



Prince Edward Island. — We find on the Island still a few of 

 the old French orchards of apples and cherries. Rural husbandry 

 has, however, been of a specialized kind, and up to a few years 

 ago little was done outside of potato growing and horse raising. 

 A deep interest in dairying and fruit growing has recently been 

 awakened. The advantages of the Island from the standpoint 

 of the fruit producer are many and weighty. Among these are 

 natural underdrainage in many parts, an equable climate and 

 proximity to the European market. Cherries have been culti- 

 vated with success since the advent of the first settlers. 

 They belong to the Kentish type and ripen a month later 

 than do the same varieties grown in Eastern Ontario. 



