418 
JOURNAL  OF  HORTICULTURE  AND  COTTAGE  GARDENER. 
May  12,  1898. 
As  Canada  ranks  farming  first  in  her  industries,  we  thought  a  few 
notes  on  the  subject  would  be  at  least  interesting,  if  not  instructive. 
For  these  notes  we  are  indebted  to  Mr.  Williams,  who  only  lately 
wrote  so  well  of  Australia  and  her  farming.  Forty  times  the  size  of 
Great  Britain  !  Is  there  not  room  for  enterprise  ?  Nearly  half  the 
population  lives  by  agriculture,  and  that  they  carry  out  their  work 
well  is  proved  by  facts,  and  we  think  these  facts  speak  louder  than 
words. 
There  are  such  diversity  of  soil  and  climate  that  all  sorts  of 
farming  and  market  gardening  are  possible,  and  space  is  almost 
inexliaustible.  The  Wheat  districts  are  Manitoba  and  Ontario,  and 
the  newer  provinces  of  Assimboia,  Alberta,  and  Saskatchewan;  in 
these  latter  there  are  still  nearly  239,000,000  of  acres  that  will  make 
into  good  farms,  and  only  about  8,000,000  acres  as  yet  taken  up. 
Canada  can  grow  5  bushels  per  acre  of  corn  more  than  the  United 
States,  and  Manitoba  “  hard  Wheat  ”  has  taken  the  gold  medal  against 
the  world’s  competition  at  an  exhibition  in  London.  Canada  has  the 
advantage  over  us  in  that  she  can  grow  all  our  grain  crops,  and  Maize 
in  addition.  Neither  can  we  yet  boast  of  doing  much  in  the  way  of 
outdoor  cultivation  of  the  Vine.  She  has  the  Barley,  British  Columbia 
produces  the  Hop.  She  can  grow  one  of  the  most  nutritious  of  feeding 
stuffs — f.e.,  Linseed.  She  can  send  us  half  the  cheese  we  import,  and 
many  of  our  best  Apples.  Having  the  food  at  hand  she  turns  it  to 
good  account,  and  supplies  our  breakfast  tables  with  admirable  ham 
and  bacon — pea  fed,  sweet,  and  toothsome.  It  is  said  that  one  house 
in  Canada  will  often  kill  in  one  week  as  many  pigs  as  are  killed  in  the 
whole  of  Denmark.  Not  only  are  the  pigs  well  fed,  but  they  are  well 
bred.  < 
Dairy  work  has  of  late  years  made  immense  strides,  and  one  has 
only  to  read  the  accounts  of  Miss  Maidment’s  visits  to  various 
Canadian  dairies  to  see  how  well  and  how  thoroughly  they  have  taken 
up  the  work  in  its  most  scientific  form.  Butter  to  Japan  !  and  cheese 
the  world  over  !  good,  sound,  and  free  from  adulteration.  Only  a  few 
days  from  England.  No  wonder  the  boundless  prairies  give  us  of 
their  fresh  beef. 
The  Board  of  Agriculture  acts  wisely  and  liberally,  and  does  all  in 
its  power  to  forward  the  best  efforts  of  the  farmer.  All  sorts  of  sub¬ 
jects  are  brought  under  its  notice,  such  as  creameries,  cold  storage 
buildings  (a  bonus  is  given  for  this),  the  art  of  winter  butter  making. 
Railway  ahd  steamship  companies  are  interviewed,  and  the'  value  of 
an  English  market  tested.  The  system  of  cold  storage  is  carried  out 
throughout  the  whole  journey — that  is,  the  butter  only  leaves  the 
.aold  storage  room  when  delivered  out  of  the  steamer  in  the  London 
'docks.  The  experimental  farms  “run”  by  Government  number  five, 
and  there  is  another  with  a  college  attached  at  Guelph,  Ontario,  in  the 
hands  of  the  Provincial  Government. 
Canada  may  be  truly  called  a  country  with  a  future,  and  a  future 
of  great  prosperity.  Boundless  area,  good  water  carriage,  hardworking 
sons,  backed  up  by  a  wise  Government  full  of  enterprise,  ready  to 
place  a  good  and  needed  article  at  a  fair  rate  on  the  world's  market. 
Cold  as  the  Canadian  winter  is,  it  has  been  fully  proved  that  most  of 
the  fruits  grown  in  England  can  be  grown  there  also. 
Nova  Scotia  and  Ontario  are  already  noted  as  growers  of  capital 
Apples,  and  on  the  Niagara  peninsula  Grapes  as  a  field  crop  produce 
immense  yields,  and  Peach,  Plum,  and  Cherry  trees  produce  fine 
fruit.  Strawberries  have  become  a  flourishing  industry  on  the 
St.  Lawrence  River  and  the  eastern  shores  of  Lake  Ontario.  On  the 
western  slope  tending  towards  the  Pacific  Ocean  and  in  Vancouver’s 
Island  fruit  growing  has  a  great  future. 
There  is  a  doubt  whether  Canadian  farming  will  ever  find  much 
favour  with  our  English  agricnlturists.  They  could  not  readily 
adapt  themselves  to  the  different  aspects  of  life.  The  distance  from 
each  other  and  from  towns,  the  practical  isolation,  and  the  long 
though  brilliant  winters  are  not  what  we  are  used  to.  The  living, 
too,  is  rough  ;  and  the  summer  work  terribly  hard  and  trying.  The 
class  of  men  best  suited  for  this  new  country  are  men  who  have  here 
been  working  foremen  or  small  farmers— whose  ideas  are  pretty  well 
concentrated  on  their  work,  and  who  apparently  need  little  or  no 
recreation.  Men  of  this  kind  with  growing  sons,  who  would  readily 
adapt  themselves  to  the  manners  and  customs  of  the  new  country, 
are  the  sort  who  ought  to  emigrate.  They  bring  as  capital  a  thorough 
knowledge  of  their  work,  and  willing  and  capable  hands  ;  and  from 
their  early  upbringing  are  not  always  craving  for  the  luxuries  and 
refinements  of  life  as  found  in  the  old  country. 
WORK  ON  THE  HOME  FARM. 
“  It  never  rains  but  it  pours  ”  would  fitly  describe  the  weather  of  the 
past  week  ;  there  has  been  no  day  without  rain,  and  some  have  been 
exceedingly  wet.  The  net  results  have  been  almost  nil  as  far  as  farm 
work  is  concerned. 
Another  patch  or  Potatoes,  planted  as  an  afterthought,  was  only 
completed  with  difficulty,  and  at  the  third  attempt,  whilst  the  condition 
of  the  land  left  much  to  be  desired,  the  ridges  exhibiting  that  bright 
polished  appearance  at  the  sides  which  denotes  an  excess  of  moisture. 
Weeds  are  growing  apace,  and  as  nothing  could  be  done  towards 
stopping  their  growth,  work  is  fast  accumulating.  A  good  wind  would 
be  very  beneficial  to  start  with,  and  a  dry  May  would  be  a  godsend  and 
hurt  nobody  now  that  we  have  had  such  a  soaking. 
Until  the  land  dries  and  becomes  workable  nothing  will  be  gained  by 
taking  horses  upon  it,  for  the  treading  is  more  likely  to  do  harm  than 
good.  There  is  manure  to  be  got  out  of  the  yards,  however,  and  if  it  be 
required  for  Swedes,  and  particularly  if  it  has  to  be  carted  any  distance, 
this  carting  had  better  be  d  me  ;  the  extra  turning  will  do  the  manure 
good  and  pay  for  the  extra  filling. 
We  are  troubled  just  now  by  a  neighbour’s  bad  fence  ;  it  is  nothing 
but  huge  gaps,  and  the  owner  has  put  two  rows  of  barbed  wire  along  his 
own  side  of  it  at  such  a  height  that  it  is  a  good  fence  for  horses  or  large 
cattle,  but  none  for  calves  or  sheep.  Our  grass  adjoining  we  cannot  stock 
with  sheep  or  young  cattle  on  this  account  until  we  have  ourselves  put  a 
strong  thorn  beard  to  keep  the  animals  at  home.  Our  neighbour  claims 
that  we  are  bound  to  fence  against  our  own  stock,  and  some  county  court 
judges  would  agree  with  him.  Surely  it  is  time  the  law  was  made  plain 
on  this  matter.  That  fevery  owner  of  fences  should  be  liable  to  keep 
them  in  such  order  as  to  turn  back  ordinary  farm  stock  would  appear  to 
be  a  ruling  that  should  appeal  to  common  sense,  and  if  the  Board  of 
Agriculture  would  get  such  a  law  placed  upon  the  Statute  Book,  it  would, 
do  much  to  earn,  and  would  deserve  the  thanks  of  farmers  of  all  grades. 
OUE  LETTER  BOX. 
“  strong”  Butter  (K  A.), — Your  rations  are  perfectly  right — that  is, 
the  food  other  than  the  grass.  The  reason  for  the  strong  butter  may  be 
from  one  or  two  causes.  1,  There  may  be  some  herb  or  plant  in  the  grass 
obnoxious,  such  as  a  species  of  garlic.  It  is  found  in  pastures  occasionally. 
2,  And  this  is  the  most  probable  cause  :  the  butter  is  not  thoroughly 
washed  when  in  a  granulated  form  (pieces  the  size  of  pin’s  heads).  With 
a  worker  there  is  no  excuse  for  butter  being  too  moist.  Is  the  water 
supply  good  ?  Has  the  dairymaid  attended  any  classes  for  instruction  ? 
Has  the  dairy  a  concrete  floor  and  no  connection  with  any  outside  drain  ? 
Are  al!  utensils  scalded  and  exposed  to  sun  and  wind  ?  Is  the  milk  dealt 
with  at  once  as  it  comes  from  the  cow  house  ?  Is  the  cow  house  sweet 
and  wholesome  ?  and  are  the  milkers  particular  ? 
METEOROLOaiCAL  OBSERVATIONS. 
Camden  Square,  London. 
Lat.  .51°  32'  40"  N.;  Loug.  0°  8'  0"  W.;  Altitude  111  feet. 
Date. 
9  A.M. 
In  the  Day. 
1898. 
2  s  P 
a 
2^  - 
Hygrometei 
Direc¬ 
tion  of 
Wind. 
Temp 
U  soli 
at 
Shade  Tem¬ 
perature. 
Radiation 
Tempera¬ 
ture 
Rain. 
May. 
S  s 
Dry. 
Wet. 
L  foot 
Max 
Min. 
In 
Sun 
On 
Grass 
- - - 
Sunday  ....  1 
Monday  ....  2 
Tuesday  ....  3 
inchs 
29-877 
deg. 
51-7 
deg. 
47  -2 
E. 
deg. 
47-6 
deg. 
57-1 
deg. 
38-8 
deg. 
75-6 
deg. 
33-3 
inchs 
0-248 
-29-554 
56-1 
54-8 
N.E. 
47-9 
69-2 
47-4 
101-4 
43-2 
— 
-29-550 
60-4 
51-5 
S.W. 
49-0 
64-2 
46.-6 
113-7 
40-8 
0-146 
29-457 
53-2 
49-8 
s.w. 
50-1 
57-1 
48-4, 
103-2 
44-1 
0-043 
Thursday  . .  5 
Friday  .  6 
Saturday  ....  7 
-29-887 
62-2 
48-8 
s. 
49-1 
66-1 
44-9 
87-4 
40-9 
0-154 
29-9-24 
53-1 
47-9 
N.W. 
49-3 
62-9 
45-3 
107-9 
41-9 
— 
30-359 
54-0 
47-1 
•N. 
49-4 
64-8 
39-4 
113-5 
35-6 
0-014 
29-801 
54-4 
49-6 
48-9 
61-6 
44-4 
100-4 
40-0 
0-605 
REMARKS. 
1st.— Overcast  early  ;  dull  and  rainy  after  11  A.M. ,  and  heavy  rain  from  3  P.M.  to 
4.30  P.M.;  foggy  in  evening. 
2nd. — Foggy  and  drizzly  early  ;  occasional  sun  from  9  A.M.,  and  bright  afternoon 
and  evening  ;  gale  at  night. 
3rd.— Brilliant  early,  and  fine  day,  though  cloudy  at  times. 
4th.— Dull  and  damp  with  frequent  rain  till  noon  ;  sunshine  and  showers  after. 
5th.— Overcast  morning  with  spots  of  rain  ;  very  gloomy  at  times.  Steady  rain 
from  3  to  6  P.M. ,  and  showery  after. 
6th.— Brilliant  till  10  a.m.,  and  fine  morning  ;  generally  overcast  from  noon,  with 
spots  of  rain  at  0.30  P.M.  and  4.40  P.M. 
7th.— Bright  sunshine  almost  throughout. 
Rather  warmer,  and  with  a  little  more  rain,  but  it  is  again  less  than  an  inch. 
No  week  has  had  an  inch  since  that  ending  September  4th,  1897,  eight  months. — 
G.  J.  Symons. 
