388 
JOURNAL  OF  HORTICULTURE  AND  COTTAGE  GARDENER, 
1-1,  1899. 
PROGRESS  IN  FRUIT  PRODUCTION. 
.  {Contimted  from  page  ^2^.) 
In  consequence  mainly  of  the  interesting  matter  on  pinching 
fruit  trees  occupying,  and  worthily  so,  a  considerable  amount  of  space 
in  our  two  last  issues,  the  publication  of  the  following  extracts  from 
.Mr.  W.  Bear’s  comprehensive  paper  in  the  “Journal  of  the  Royal 
Agricultural  Society  of  England  ”  has  been  postponed. 
Truit  in  the  Evesham  District. 
“Forty  years  ago  Potato  growing  was  the  great  industry  at 
Evesham,  and  very  little  fruit  was  produced  there ;  but  during  that 
period,  and  mainly  within  the  last  twenty  years,  fruit  planting  has 
been  constantly  extending,  and  now  there  must  be  considerably  over 
3000  acres  within  a  few  miles  of  the  prosperous  little  Worcestershire 
town.  The  rent  of  market  garden  land  close  to  the  town  before  being 
planted  with  fruit  is  £4  to  £5  an  acre,  while  planted  land  is  worth  £8 
to  £10  per  annum,  but  these  rents  are  charged  only  when  the  landlord 
■originally  planted  the  trees,  or  has  bought  up  the  tenant’s  right  in 
them;  for  an  interesting  system  of  tenant-right  prevails  in  the  Evesham 
district,  under  which  a  quitting  market  gardener  or  fruit  grower  sells 
his  interest  to  a  successor  approved  by  the  landlord,  either  at  the  old 
rent  or  at  an  altered  one  agreed  upon  by  the  landlord  and  the  new 
tenant. 
“  It  is  satisfactory  to  learn  that  fruit  growers  in  the  district  are 
generally  prosperous,  and  vegetable  growers  likewise  ;  many  get  a 
living  from  5  acres  of  fruit  trees  and  the  crops  grown  between  and 
ainder  them,  working  themselves  and  employing  four  or  five  men  also. 
Twenty  acres  of  fruit  are  considered  as  making  a  large  business  in 
Evesham,  and  no  one,  so  far  as  I  can  learn,  has  over  30  acres  of  fruit 
alone.  At  a  few  miles  distant,  however,  and  in  the  neighbourhood  of 
'Salford  Prior,  fruit  plantations  are  larger,  and  one  grower  has  about 
100  acres.  The  labourers  earn  fair  wages  for  a  place  iu  the  midst  of  a 
great  agricultural  neighbourhood.  In  Evesham  they  get  17s.  a  week, 
and  in  parishes  just  outside  IGs.  Women  have  Is.  6il.  a  da}",  but  wmrk 
mostly  by  the  piece.  * 
“  Mr.  II.  Masters,  one  of  the  most  extensive  fruit  growers,  stated 
that  the  most  important  fruit  crop  in  the  Evesham  district  is  the  Eeg 
■(or  Pershore)  Plum,  and  the  next  (in  Evesham,  but  not  so  much  in  the 
outlying  parishes),  the  Damascene  or  Worcester  Damson.  Apples  rank 
next  in  importance  among  tree  fruits,  and  then  Cherries,  Pears  not 
being  grown  to  a  large  extent.  The  great  size  and  flourishing  condi¬ 
tion  of  the  old  Plum  trees  in  the  district  are  remarkable,  and  the 
suitability  of  the  soil  and  climate  to  this  fruit  is  further  show'n  by  the 
long  life  of  the  trees.  Mr.  Masters  has  some  giants  nearly  forty  years 
old,  and  still  full  of  vigour.  He  has  six  or  seven  pots  of  (72  lbs.),  or 
430  lbs.  to  500  lbs.,  off  a  sipgle  Damascene  tree  in  a  very  prolific  season. 
The  Victoria  is  most  commonly  grown,  next  to  the  two  varieties 
mentioned ;  after  which  come  Rivers’s  Early  Prolific,  New '  Orleans, 
'Czar,  Cox’s  Emperor,  and  Monarch.  The  Gooseberry  is  by  far  the 
most  important  bush  fruit  in  Evesham.  Strawberries  are  not  grown 
upon  a  large  scale,  though  a  great  many  market  gardeners  have  small 
pieces.  Mr.  Masters  has  8  acres,  and  last  year  16  tons  were  gathered 
from  2  acres,  besides  a  quantity  of  waste.  The  crop  is  a  somewhat 
uncertain  one  ;-but,  when  8  tons  per  acre  are  produced,  it  must  be  an 
extremely  profitable  one.  Probably  such  a  yield  is  rare.  Young  fruit 
trees  are  pruned  in  the  autumn  and  winter  ;  but  after  a  few  years  they 
require  only  a  little  trimming  to  keep  them  in  shape.  The  manures 
used  for  fruit  are  chiefly  soot,  fish  guano,  blood  manure,  and  phosphates. 
Basic  slag  is  coming  into  use  as  a  phosphatic  manure. 
The  Pershore  Fruit  District. 
“The  Earl  of  Coventry,  as  President  of  the  Royal  Agricultural 
Society,  kindly  interested  himself  in  my  investigation  of  the  fruit 
industry,  and  invited  me  to  visit  his  Croome  Court  Estate,  in  the 
Pershore  district  of  Worcestershire.  Under  the  obliging  guidance  of 
the  Earl’s  agent,  Mr.  Hill,  who  gave  a  great  deal  of  information 
about  the  district,  a  visit  was  first  made  to  the  jam  factory,  close  to 
Pershore  Station,  established  and  worked  for  a  few  years  by  Lord 
Coventry  for  the  benefit  of  his  tenants,  but  now  in  the  hands  of 
Messrs.  Beach  &  Son.  The  factory  is  small,  but  well  appointed,  and 
everything  was  found  perfectly  clean  and  conveniently  arranged. 
Jam  making  was  finished  for  the  day,  but  fruit  was  coming  in  for  the 
following  day  s  work.  Mr.  Beach,  jun.,  said  that  in  consequence  of 
the  abundance  of  Plums  in  the  district  he  expected  to  be  able  to 
•obtain  them  for  2s.  9d.  or  Js.  per  pot  of  72  lbs.,  instead  of  9s.  to  lOs. 
paid  in  the  previous  year  ;  but  it  is  doubtful  whether  they  came 
down  to  such  low  prices  during  the  season,  and  Mr.  Cosnett,  one  of 
the  Earl  of  Coventry’s  tenants,  made  16s.  6d.  per  pot  as  a  starting 
price  at  Birmingham  _  for  Early  Rivers.  Mr.  George  Jones  has  an 
-excellent  fruit  plantation  at  Piuvin,  close  to  the  jam  factory.  Seven 
acres  of  the  plantation  are  occupied  by  Gooseberries  as  bottom  fruit, 
•and  530  pots  (17  tons)  had  been  picked  ofif  that  area,  while  enough 
remained  as  ripe  fruit  to  make  up  an  average  of  24  tons  per  acre. 
The  principal  varieties  are  Crown  Bab  for  selling  early,  Whinham’s 
Industry,  I a'lcashire  Lad,  Keepsake,  and  a  few  Warringtons  for  ripe 
fruit,  for  which  Lancashire  Lads  also  are  held  over  to  some  extent. 
Some  of  the  bushes  are  twenty-three  j’cars  old.  Others  planted  only 
three  years  before  the  past  season,  when  they  were  a  year  old,  had  a 
tremendous  crop.  They  bore  fairly  in  the  second  year.  These  w’ere 
Lancashire  Lads.  Over  200  pots  of  Whinham’s  Industry  were  picked 
off  1  acre,  and  none  of  them  sold  at  less  than  4s.  a  pot,  so  that  the 
return  on  this  acre  for  bottom  fruit  alone  was  over  £40. 
“  Mr.  Cosnett  said  his  crop  of  Gooseberries  was  the  biggest  he  ever 
saw,  and  his  years  are  not  few.  He  had  picked  about  200  pots  'of 
Whinham’s  Industry  from  an  acre.  This  would  be  nearly  6^  tons, 
an  enormous  quantity.  The  bulk  had  been  sold  at  £7  a  ton. 
Mr.  Cosnett  was  afforded  an  object  lesson  as  to  the  harm  done  by 
putting  grease  on  to  the  trunks  of  trees  without  bands  before  he  had 
learned  the  danger  of  so  acting.  The  trees  were  badly  injured. 
“  There  was  much  to  see  at  Croome  Court  and  in  the  grounds 
besides  the  fruit  plantations,  including  a  beautiful  kitchen  garden  of 
extraordinary  size.  The  Earl  of  Coventry  was  good  enough  to  show 
me  many  objects  of  interest,  and  to  accompany  me  to  the  fruit 
plantations,  40  acres  in  extent.  They  consist  of  Plums  and  Apples, 
planted  alternately — a  very  good  plan — with  Black  Currants  as  the 
only  bottom  fruit,  as  less  liable  to^the  depredalions  of  birds  than 
Gooseberries  or  Red  Currants.  As  the  plantations  are  isolated  this  is 
an  important  consideration.  The  trees  and  bushes  presented  a  very 
prosperous  appearance.  The  fruit  is  sold  by  tender  as  it  grow’s,  buyers 
to  do  the  picking.  Mr.  Hill  in  this  way  once  sold  for  Lord  Coventry 
three-quarter  acre  of  Plums  and  Apples  for  £70,  and  he  knew  of  a  case 
in  which  If  acres  sold  for  £90.  Both  sales  took  place  some  years  ago. 
Lord  Coventry  is  fortunate  in  not  being  troubled  with  the  Black 
Currant  mite,  his  immunity  being  due  to  the  isolation  of  his  orchards. 
There  are  betw''een  200  and  300  acres  of  fruit  on  the  estate. 
Fruit  Growing  and  Preserving  in  Essex. 
“  Although  Essex  is  not  a  great  fruit  county  orchards  have 
increased  by  nearly  1000  acres  since  1878,  and  the  small  fruit  by 
about  1300  acres  since  1888.  In  that  county,  moreover,  one  of  the  most 
striking  instances  of  a  farmer  becoming  a  successful  fruit  growler  is  to 
be  found.  In  1862,  Mr.  A.  C.  Wilkin  of  Tiptree  Heath,  near  Kelvedon, 
occupying  the  next  farm  to  the  late  Mr.  J.  J.  Mechi,  came  to  the 
conclusion  that  Wheat  growing  was  not  likely  to  pay,  and  therefore 
turned  his  attention  to  fruit  growing.  He  began  on  a  very  small 
scale,  planting  only  2  acres  of  Strawberries.  The  plants  cost  no  less 
than  £25,  and  were  difficult  to  obtain  even  at  that  high  price,  as 
existing  growers  did  not  care  to  supply  a  new  competitor.  However, 
Mr.  Wilkin  increased  his  fruit  area  every  year,  and  in  1885  he  built 
his  jam  factory.  In  1887  the  business  was  transferred  to  a  limited 
company,  called  the  Britannia  Fruit  Preserving  Company,  with  a  share 
capital  of  £13,500,  Mr.  Wilkin  owning  more  than  half  the  shares,  and 
being  made  managing  director.  At  present  twm  of  his  sons  are  the 
only  other  directors,  and  a  third  son  is  secretary.  Since  that  date  the 
acreage  of  fruit  has  been  increased  to  260  acres.  There  are  165  acres 
of  Strawberries,  43  acres  of  Raspberries,  30  acres  of  Black  Currants, 
and  small  areas  of  Red  Currants,  Gooseberries,  Plums,  Damsons, 
Greengages,  Apples,  Quinces,  Blackberries  and  Cherries,  some  of  the 
bush  fruit  being  on  the  same  ground  as  trees.  The  soil  is  a  stiff  loam 
over  what  Mr.  Mechi  used  to  call  a  “  bird-lime  ”  subsoil,  and  Straw¬ 
berries  flourish  upon  it  magnificently.  The  Small  Scarlet  Strawberry, 
descended  from  the  wild  alpine,  is  a  speciality  at  Tiptree  Heath,  no 
less  than  55  acres  being  devoted  to  it,  as  it  makes  the  best  of  jam. 
The  crop  of  this  variety  seen  on  July  5th  was  the  finest  inspected 
anywhere  during  my  wanderings  through  some  of  the  principal  fruit 
districts.  There  were  two  rows  only  on  an  eight-furrow  stretch,  this 
Strawberry  being  of  a  spreading  habit,  and  the  plants  stood  up  high 
above  the  ground  covered  with  the  small  and  brightly  coloured  berries. 
Fair  crops  of  Paxton  and  Royal  Sovereign  were  also  seen,  the  few 
Nobles  grown  having  been  gathered.  Picking  was  in  full  swing,  over 
400  persons  being  employed,  with  a  dozen  gangers  to  superintend. 
The  prices  usually  paid  for  picking  are  Id.  per  3  lbs.,  or  4  lbs.  for  the 
large  varieties,  and  Id.  per  lb.  for  Small  Scarlets.  Men  earn  4s.  to  7s. 
a  day  at  picking,  and  Mr.  Williin  has  known  a  man  to  earn  10s.  in  a 
day.  Women  and  girls  are  also  largely  employed.  Women  do  not 
pick  as  much  ftuit  in  a  day  as  men,  but  do  the  work  more  carefully. 
Mr.  Wilkin  sells  fruit  when  it  is  dear,  and  he  made  10s.  a  peck  of  his 
earliest  Royal  Sovereigns.  Strawberries  yield  well  when  two  years  old, 
and  stand  for  six  or  seven  years  on  this  farm. 
“No  pulp  is  made  in  the  factory  except  when  there  is  a  glut  of 
fruit,  and  then  only  for  the  ‘household  jam,’  which  is  distingushed 
from  the  ‘  whole  fruit  conserves,’  and  sold  at  lower  prices.  Moreover, 
rapidly  perishable  fruit,  such  as  Strawberries  and  Raspberries,  is  never 
held  over  for  a  day  when  intended  for  whole-fruit  preserves.-  The 
picking  of  Strawberries  starts  at  4  A.M.,  and  the  first  lot  is  made  into 
jam  by  6  a.m.  About  200  tons  of  jam  are  made  in  a  year,  including 
about  half  the  fruit  grown  by  the  company,  and  some  fruit  purchased. 
