21 



Reaching Digby and following the coast line to Yarmouth, and around the 

 south shore as far as Bridgewater in the County of Lunenburg, an extensive 

 territory was traversed, of which the possibilities from a fruitgrowing standpoint 

 are as yet undeveloped and unknown, fishing and lumbering seeming to be the 

 chief occupations of the people. 



Demonstration Orchard at Bridgewater. 



In the vicinity of the pretty town of Bridgewater some considerable efforts 

 have been made to grow fruit, and here was situated another of the model 

 orchards of the Province, on the property of Mr. A. T. Hebb. This orchard 

 is being well taken care of and Mr. Hebb is endeavouring to handle it in such 

 a way as to demonstrate the capabilities of this section to produce excellent 

 apples of the standard kinds. 



Cranberry Culture. 



The cranberry bog of Mr. W. A. Hebb, about ten acres in extent, has been 

 reclaimed within the last few years from what was a jungle and swamp until at 

 the present time Mr. Hebb values it at $1,000 per acre. Cranberries are also 

 grown to a considerable extent in the Annapolis Valley, in the neighbourhood 

 of Kingston, Aylesford and Berwick, some three or four thousand barrels of 

 this fruit being produced last season. 



Halifax. 



Leaving Bridgewater our next stop was at the historic city of Halifax. 

 Short interviews were had with a number of the wholesale dealers who all agreed 

 in the statement that the fruit shipped from Ontario frequently arrived in bad 

 condition, and was not very saleable. The same criticism would apply to a 

 great deal of the fruit seen by the writer, some of it from the American side 

 and some from Ontario. 



Mr. Colwell, a broker who handles large quantities of fruit in the season, 

 stated that there was a fair market in Halifax and surrounding towns for such 

 fruits from Ontario as could not be successfully produced in Nova Scotia, provid- 

 ing greater care was taken in the handling and packing for that market. 



Improved Ocean Transportation Necessary. 



During the early part of the season the Furness Withy line of steamers, 

 leaving St. John and Halifax for the Old Country, provides about the only 

 means that Nova Scotians have at present for the trans-shipment of their early 

 apples to England. As the dates of sailing of these steamers are somewhat 

 uncertain and the time required in transit is considerably longer than the regular 

 mail steamers, a good deal of loss and disappointment has been experienced 

 in the past by those availing themselves of this method of transportation. 

 Conditions were so critical last season, in view of the prospective heavy crop, 

 that at the time of our visit the co-operative associations were seriously consider- 

 ing the proposition of forwarding a portion of their early apples to the English 

 market by way of Montreal in order to take advantage of the larger and swifter 

 boats. 



Nappan. 



On our way westward a visit was made to the Experimental Farm at Nappan, 

 where extensive plantings of a large variety of apples, plums and other fruits 



