FRUIT CULTURE AT THE CAPE. 



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FRUIT CULTURE AT THE CAPE. 



By Mr. H. E. V. Pickstone. 



[A Lecture before the Horticultural Club.] 



As you all know, South Africa is a big country, approximately, I suppose, 

 1,000 miles long by 500 miles broad, and is divided into several 

 ■colonies, Cape Colony, Rhodesia — which is an extremely large country — 

 Natal, the Transvaal, and the Orange River Colony. Fruit-growing has 

 been carried on from the very first occupation over scattered acres of 

 land in these several colonies, and often at very wide intervals apart. In 

 speaking of " Cape fruit," as it is spoken of in London, it simply means 

 ■at present fruit grown within 100 miles of Cape Town, or rather in 

 the south-western districts of Cape Colony ; and I think it will perhaps 

 be best if I speak more or less about what is now being done in that part 

 of the country, and then say a few words of the possibility of a further 

 extension in South Africa under the new development that recently has 

 set in. 



The Cape fruit district is at present confined to a comparatively small 

 section of the country, and there is a climatic reason for this. The 

 south-western districts are the only ones in which the country gets its 

 rainfall in the winter. Those of you who know anything about fruit- 

 growing will understand the importance of a winter rainfall for deciduous 

 fruits, and can realise what w T e have to contend with in a country where 

 there is a summer rainfall, and at the same time a high temperature and 

 all sorts of pests. Therefore I fancy it is impossible that for some time 

 fruit will be grown otherwise than in small patches, and these will be 

 -ehieny confined to the south-western districts. 



It may be of interest to know that many of the best varieties of fruits 

 were introduced into Cape Colony over 100 years ago by the Dutch 

 East India Company. To prove their excellence I may mention that it 

 has been recognised by men who have been twelve years out in California, 

 where fruit-growing is carried on extensively, that in South Africa we 

 have some of the best varieties in the world. It is of some interest to 

 follow up the history of these varieties, and in doing so I have felt that 

 the old Dutch Company deserve the utmost credit for the way they 

 studied the interests of their colonial possessions. Unfortunately it 

 became apparent that, owing to the isolated position of the Cape, the 

 possible benefit to the colony from the growing of superior fruit was 

 small ; and the result was that deterioration in the quality of the pro- 

 •duction set in steadily until about twelve years ago. At that time Cape 

 •Colony was really in a very bad way, speaking in a general sense ; and 

 when the Ministry of the late Mr. Rhodes was in power many thinking 

 people came to the conclusion that every effort should be made to establish 

 any industry which held a possibility of benefiting South Africa. It had 

 been recognised that it was unsound to depend alone upon the gold and 



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