270 



The Orchards of Middlesex. 



[June, 



and heavier soils of the northern half of the county very little 

 commercial fruit-growing is attempted, except in the Enfield 

 district of the Lea Valley, which contains some of the most 

 productive orchards in the county. Here again, however, the 

 activities of the builder, and the extensive brick-fields of the 

 locality, are gradually crowding out the fruit grower and market 

 -gardener. 



There is still plenty of room in West Middlesex for the develop- 

 ment of fruit plantations, and with the excellent marketing faci- 

 lities and favourable natural conditions, one might have 

 expected the industry to increase and keep well up-to-date; but 

 the facts are rather the reverse. The same markets and con- 

 ditions are equally favourable to commercial vegetable growing, 

 and while the latter has attracted new growers and gradually 

 increased, fruit-growing appears to be steadily declining, or per- 

 haps it would be more correct to say that the planting of young 

 orchards is not keeping pace with the demolition of the old ones 

 in the urban districts. 



The Agricultural Returns give the following figures for 

 Middlesex : — 





1910. 



1920. 









Acres. 



A cres. 





A cres. 



Apples 



1,115 



998 



decrease 



117 



Pears 



438 



262 



» 



176 



Cherries 



16G 



87 



»? 



79 



I Mums 



725 



545 



15 



180 



Mixed Orchards 



2,901 



3,103 



increase 



202 



Total Orchards 



5,345 



4.995 



Decrease 



350 acres. 



Small Fruits* 



4,139 



1,939 



decrease 



2,200 



As regards fruit it will be observed that the only increase 

 •shown above is that of 202 acres of mixed orchards. This would 

 be largely accounted for by the fact that orchards which 

 originally consisted of one kind of fruit only have since been 

 -replenished with other kinds and become " mixed." 



Many of the plantations are hopelessly mixed, and it is almost 

 impossible to say what they consist of. Apparently for many 

 years, as one tree has died, another, often of a different kind, 

 has been planted, with the result that one finds, not merely 

 mixed varieties of apples, etc., but apples, plums, and pears all 

 mixed together without any ordered arrangement. On the other 

 hand, plantations are by no means uncommon, w^hich for uni- 



* The acreage of land on which small fruit is grown under orchard trees 

 is included both as small fruit and as orchards. 



