i9io.] 



Fruit Trade in the Metropolis. 



253 



abandoned in this country, but we receive large consignments from 

 Teneriffe, which are sold at Covent Garden during many months of 

 the year. The present price is about 3s. to 5s. each, which is rather 

 higher than usual. 



Grapes. — Last Michaelmas, glass-house grapes realised exceedingly 

 low prices, and many growers talked of giving up their cultivation. 

 When fine Alicante and Black Hamburgh grapes only realise from 4CL 

 to 6d. per lb. the trade must certainly be unremunerative. Muscats 

 were worth rather more, from is. 6d. to ^s., but there is only a limited 

 demand at this price. Competition from Belgium and Spain is severe,, 

 and threatens to ruin the grape trade in this country. Large quantities 

 of Almeria grapes are landed close to London Bridge, and consigned 

 to auctioneers at the Monument, where they are disposed of to dealers,, 

 fruiterers and costermongers at low prices. At present the figures for 

 selected parcels are about gs. to 125. per dozen pounds, but in the winter 

 season they are extremely cheap, and it is at that time that they 

 compete severely with the home-grown supply of a better class. Just 

 now new Black Hamburgh s of home culture are arriving, and the 

 price rules between 2s. 6d. and 35. 6d. per lb. 



Tomatoes. — Tomatoes come now from Worthing and many other 

 glass-fields, and also from the Channel Islands and the Canaries. 

 Values vary according to the district where they originate ; British 

 stand first from 4s. 6d. to 6s. 6d., Guernseys come next at from 4s. to 6s. 

 per dozen pounds, while Canaries in boxes are cheap. 



Gooseberries. — Gooseberries appear on the market at Whitsun, and 

 gradually supersede rhubarb. The earliest receipts come from Kent 

 and Worcestershire, and are followed by consignments from Middlesex 

 and the surrounding districts. The current price is 4s. to 46. 6d. a 

 half-bushel, estimated to contain 24 lb. Where there is a heavy crop 

 this price should be remunerative. 



Strawberries. — Strawberries have suffered immensely this spring ; 

 they are now in bloom, but the foliage is meagre, and with such 

 scarcity of leafage a full crop can hardly be predicted. Last year there 

 was a heavy yield, but this was counterbalanced by the unfavourable 

 weather. Never were so many tons of strawberries left mouldy in the 

 open, some picked, some left on the bine ungathered ; while thousands 

 of baskets were sent from the Southampton district, which on arrival 

 in London were nearly worthless. Strawberries now arriving are raised 

 under glass, and fetch from 6d. to 35. per lb., according to size and 

 colour. They will rapidly become cheaper when the first parcels grown 

 in the open air begin to arrive. 



Cucumbers. — Cucumbers fluctuate considerably according to demahd 

 and supply. Early in the year the demand was small, but the quantity 

 ready for table was smaller still, so that fine, well-shaped cucumbers 

 realised 10s. to 12s. per doz. ; these favourable prices were maintained 

 for about a month, and then dropped gradually, until now about 2s. 

 to 2S. 6d. a dozen is an average price. Large quantities are received 

 from Holland, and this tends to depress prices. In Bedfordshire and 

 other counties, a limited acreage of Ridge cucumbers is produced in 

 autumn ; these require shelter early in their career, and rows of 

 rye are sown in the previous November to form a temporary hedge, 

 just strong enough to break the wind when plants are tender. In a 



