ASPECT 5 
in what direction your orchard faces. The advantages 
and disadvantages of each aspect in turn pretty nearly 
counterbalance one another. A southern slope, while it 
exposes the early opening blossoms to greater risk of 
injury by spring frosts, on the other hand puts a higher 
colour on the finished product. A northern exposure 
retards the opening of the blossoms, and so minimizes 
the danger arising from frost; but, to counterbalance 
this advantage, it does not secure such a high colour in 
the apple. Provided the orchard is so situated that no 
ridge or projecting shoulder or bluff of a mountain shuts 
out too large a proportion of the daily sunshine, any 
aspect will do. In British Columbia there is generally 
no lack of sunshine. A north-west slope is on the whole 
the best, but its balance of advantages does not very 
greatly exceed those of other aspects. There is only one 
direction towards which I personally would not be will- 
ing to plant an orchard, and that is on land which faces 
the north unsheltered. On the other hand, if land so 
situated is sufficiently sheltered and protected against 
that fierce enemy, the north wind, I would not be 
deterred from planting even there. Proper shelter can 
always be secured by planting a suitable wind-break, 
such as one or more rows of Norway spruce or Lombardy 
poplar. 
Speaking generally, the most favourable districts for 
growing fruit are those which lie alongside a lake or a 
big river. The presence of a comparatively large body 
of water in the vicinity exercises a beneficially moderating 
influence upon the orchard trees, chiefly by regulating 
the temperature at the times of dangerous frosts. 
