584 



JOURNAL OF THE ROYAL HORTICULTURAL SOCIETY. 



shops and table-delicacy warehouses are fully supplied with bottled fruits 

 bearing American, French, and German labels. I have, moreover, been 

 told recently on the highest authority that many of the English bottles 

 of fruit are bottled in this country from foreign-grown tinned fruit. Such 

 a disgrace to our commercial integrity is a great hardship to the honest 

 traders in this country. 



There are several tentative movements in the same direction in 

 England. A proposal is on foot to start a large fruit and vegetable 

 drying factory on a new vacuum principle in East Anglia ; but it should 

 be noted that this locality has been chosen so as to ensure a plentiful 

 supply of raw material by importation from Holland and Northern 

 Europe in the event of the home supply giving out ! 



One preserving company dries fruit by a current of hot air, but it is 

 alleged that this system is three times as costly as the vacuum method of 

 drying. 



I must apologise if some of these remarks have seemed pedantic or 

 truistic, although they were not so intended, and I feel sure that there is 

 a great future for English fruit-culfcure, if the growers will but bestir 

 themselves and recapture the trade which lies within their grasp. The 

 days of general co-operation in the distribution or utilisation of fruit may 

 still be far distant, but it is open to the fruit-growers of any locality to 

 grow certain sorts and certain varieties of fruit or vegetables, and thus 

 soon secure a reputation of being able to supply such produce, of uniform 

 quality and in considerable quantities. As the acreage under the increased 

 crop increased, a small factory might be added on co-operative or joint- 

 stock principles. 



That our growers are capable of making excellent preserves is clearly 

 to be seen in the Exhibitions held by our Society, and I for one look 

 forward with confidence to the time when all our dried fruit, bottled 

 fruit, and jams will be home-grown and home-preserved, and all fresh fruit 

 required for our markets will either be grown at home or be provided 

 by the Colonies of our Empire. 



APPENDIX. 



Various Notes on Fruit Preserving. 



The United States Department of Agriculture's Farmers' Bulletin, 

 No. 203, referred to at p. 572, deserves to be reproduced in this country 

 in its entirety, but owing to space limitations it is only possible to quote 

 the following general instructions : — 



The process of making a syrup is very simple, but there are a few points 

 that must be observed if syrup and fruit are to be perfect. Put the sugar and 

 water into the saucepan and stir on the stove until all the sugar is dissolved. 

 Heat slowly to the boiling point and boil gently without stirring. The length 

 of time that the syrup should boil will depend upon how rich it is to be. All 

 syrups are better for boiling from ten to thirty minutes. If rich syrups are 

 boiled hard, jarred, or stirred they are apt to crystallise. The syrup may be 

 made a day or two in advance of canning time. The light syrups will not keep 

 long unless sealed, but the heavy syrups keep well if covered well. 



