ry spells during spring,
when a judicious watering would be a great advantage. This does not
imply a regular system of irrigation, but simply the conserving of
surplus moisture in times of plenty by means of dams across small
natural watercourses or gullies, by tanks where such do not occur, or
from wells where an available supply of underground water may be
obtained. The water so conserved will only be needed occasionally, but
it is an insurance against any possible loss or damage that might accrue
to the trees during a dry spell of extra length. So far, little has been
done in coastal districts in conserving water for fruit-growing, the
natural rainfall being considered by many to be ample; but, in the
writer's opinion, it will be found to be a good investment, as it will
be the means of securing regular crops instead of an occasional partial
failure, due to lack of sufficient moisture during a critical period of
the tree's growth. The average yearly rainfall in the eastern seaboard
varies from 149 inches at Geraldton to 41 inches at Bowen, the mean
average being about 90 inches to the north and 49 inches to the south of
Townsville. Were this fall evenly distributed throughout the year, it
would be ample for all requirements. Unfortunately, however, it is not
evenly distributed, the heavy falls taking place during the summer
months, so that there is often a dry spell of greater or less extent
during the winter and spring, during which a judicious watering has a
very beneficial effect on fruit trees, and secures a good crop for the
coming season. The rainfall shows that there is no fear of a shortage of
water at any time, the only question is to conserve the surplus for use
during a prolonged dry spell. These conditions are extremely favourable
for the growth of all tropical and semi-tropical fruits, as during our
period of greater heat, when these fruits make their greatest call for
moisture, there is an abundance of rain, and during the other portions
of the year, when the call is not so heavy, it is usually an inexpensive
matter to conserve or obtain a sufficient supply to keep the trees in
the best of order. Throughout the southern half of this seaboard frosts
are not unknown on low-lying ground, but are extremely rare on the
actual coast, or at an elevation of 300 to 400 feet above the sea, so
much so that no precautions are necessary to prevent damage from frost.
We have, unlike Florida and other parts of the Unite