92 JOURNAL OF THE ROYAL HORTICULTURAL SOCIETY. 



are intended in various ways to inform, encourage, and direct the growers, 

 and to demonstrate practical methods of growing fruit, the essentially 

 commercial nature of the industry being always kept in full view. The 

 farms are spread over the whole Dominion to serve all important districts ; 

 where all branches of agriculture are included, they are carried on 

 together with complete success. Publicity is secured by means of ex- 

 cursions, correspondence, bulletins, and the attendance of officers at such 

 meetings as this ; so that close touch is kept between the officials and the 

 growers, whose paid servants the former cheerfully acknowledge them- 

 selves to be, and the entire system of horticultural education is loyally 

 supported by the press, both daily and weekly, in such a manner as to be 

 of incalculable benefit to the fruit-growing community. Such is an im- 

 perfect account of some aspects of experimental fruit-farm work in 

 Canada. 



Mr. H. F. Getting (Eoss, Herefordshire) : I have been asked to make 

 a few remarks, though I am not an experimentalist, but a fruit grower 

 of quite recent date. 



I take it that it is generally admitted that fruit growing, distributing, 

 and marketing are capable of considerable improvement, and that fruit 

 growers require assistance in experimenting. How can we fruit growers 

 be assisted to gain the knowledge to grow the largest crops of the most 

 saleable varieties of clean sound fruit ? Can we, as scattered individuals, 

 without Government help, do so ? I fear not. Growers in America, 

 Canada, and other countries have had willing and practical help from 

 their Governments, and I venture to say the results have warranted it. 

 We are not ungrateful to public-spirited men and women, such as the 

 Duke of Bedford, the late Miss Eleanor Ormerod, and Mr. F. V. Theobald, 

 for helping us, but it is not enough. 



Private growers have not the scientific training nor the time, nor, as a 

 rule, the money, to carry on research or experimental work ; though, 

 undoubtedly, fruit growers could, to a limited extent, assist in carrying 

 on some experiments. 



The United States of America have, besides other institutions, sixty- 

 three colleges and experimental farms, provided under Acts of Congress, 

 which teach and experiment in agriculture, and most of them in fruit 

 culture. Also a Bureau of Plant Industry, one department of which is 

 specially devoted to pomological investigations, and collecting and dis- 

 seminating information regarding fruit industry. Canada also has similar 

 institutions. I have read and studied a considerable number of the 

 bulletins issued by them, which have been most courteously sent to 

 me, and I am astounded at the vast amount of really practical in- 

 formation contained in them, and only regret that, in many instances, 

 it is not applicable to this country. 



France has its Government schools and experiment stations, some for 

 agriculture and horticulture, and some for horticulture only, Government 

 laboratories, &c, Maintenance scholarships being given to a certain 

 number of pupils. 



What has our Government done ? There are county council lecturers 

 on fruit growing, but, with all due deference, they are not the men we 

 want. They are not of the calibre or scientific training that is required 



