Very few persons have any idea of the magnitude or the resources of this
State of Queensland, and in no branch of agricultural industry are they
more clearly shown than in that of fruit-growing. Here, unlike the
colder parts of the world or the extreme tropics, we are not confined to
the growing of particular varieties of fruits, but, owing to our great
extent of country, and its geographical distribution, we are able to
produce practically all the cultivated fruits of the world, many of them
to great perfection. There are, however, one or two tropical fruits that
are exceptions, such as the durien and mangosteen, whose range is
extremely small, and one or two of the berry fruits of cold countries,
which require a colder winter than that experienced in any part of this
State. It will, however, be seen at once that a country that can produce
such fruits as the mango, pineapple, banana, papaw, granadilla, guava,
custard apple, litchi, sour sop, cocoa nut, bread fruit, jack fruit,
monstera, alligator pear, and others of a purely tropical character; the
date, citrus fruits of all kinds, passion fruit, persimmon, olive, pecan
nut, cape gooseberry, loquat, and other fruits of a semi-tropical
character, as well as the fruits of the more temperate regions, such as
the apple, pear, plum, peach, apricot, quince, almond, cherry, fig,
walnut, strawberry, mulberry, and others of minor importance, in
addition to grapes of all kinds, both for wine and table, and of both
European and American origin, offers a very wide choice of fruits indeed
to the prospective grower. Of course, it must not be thought for a
moment that all the fruits mentioned can be grown to perfection at any
one place in the State, as that would be an impossibility, but they can
be grown in some part of the State profitably and to great perfection.
The law of successful fruit culture is the same here as in all other
fruit-producing countries--viz., to grow in your district only those
fruits which are particularly adapted to your soil and climate, and to
let others grow those fruits which you cannot grow, but which their
conditions allow them to produce to perfection. The intending grower
must, therefore, first decide on what fruits he wishes to grow, and when
he has done so, select the district best suited to their growth. The
small map of the State shows the districts in which certain fruits may
be grown profitably, or, rather, the districts in which they are at
present being so grown; but there are many other districts in which
fruit-growing has not been attempted in commercial quantities or for
other than purely home consumption that, once the State begins to fill
up with population, are equal, if not superior, to the older
fruit-growing districts, and are capable of maintaining a large
population.
[Illustration: Typical Clean Orchard.]