The Mellette County pioneer. [volume] (Wood, Mellette County, S.D.) 19??-1971, 1920-11-12
is FAVORED Land
Western Canada Country OF
Great Possibilities.
Soil. Climate, and Weather Conoitions
All Factors in the Production OF
UnrivaIed Fruit, Vegetables
and Flowers as We'll
as Grain.

AS recently as last mOnth-to be cor
rect, it was the 18th of OCTOBER, Il lih'
of year when one naturally looks lul
the frost upon the punkin, ahd l.
inclined to wander through the WoouS
in search Of the ripencd nuts, am au-
mire the beautiful c0lorinGs thal lH'
autumn atmosphere has bestowed upon
the leaves: when II goes TO MS cloSct'
or maybe his paWnbrOker, TO Hilu M
heavy clothing-it was tlat 1 louh"
myself the guest Of Il Western Cahaua
housewife in her beautiful home on
the outskirts OF the pretty little town
of Moosomin, Saskatchewan. Inc nm
ner! That's what Mrs. Nllde cai'e"
it. / should have termed 1t 4 bahque'.
There were mallard duck, cooked 10 IL
turn, baked p0tatoeS-and sucl plE'
mealy fellows they were. too-cauH-
flower-and say, did YOU ever tasie
one of those Western Canada cauil-
tlower?-then dessert. What was the
dessert? l can see it now. straw
berries, strawberries that had oeel
picked that morning. Help yourSeil
to the cream-Nnd it was cream thal
is cream. But what wanted 10 Wrlt'
about was the strawberries Plckeu or
the 18th of October. AS | ate,
turned my back while q second help-
ing was placed in front OF me- coui"
not but think how this goes to retutc
the once accepted idea that the Gil
mate of Western Canada is Such thar
the ~ripening Of strawberries at any
season is one of the things that mlght
be looked upon as next TO impoSSlhlc.
Fortunately it is rapidly giving place
TO one which acknowledges that our
sister nation to the north possesses It
climate that makes X quite possible {"
develop and ripen strawberries ever
in October.
But there is more to add. On DC
tober IA, just a few days previous. Mr..
A. y. Smith, near the same town.
plucked a splendid mess of green corn
from his garden. Near R~Ocauvill",
Saskatchewan, wild raSpberries wer"
picked during the same week. The
fact Of ripening fruit at this date may
seem Of little moment. but when yoli
are told that corn did not suffer from
any vagaries Of weather. more attcr-
ton may be paid TO it. The question
of Western Canada's climate is nn
longer The bugabOO it once was, ana
not so very long ago, either, when II
caused thinking people TO think, and
unquestionably prevented many from
going to CanaCa who under other con
ditions would have gone.
In various parts of this country. at
different state and county fairs, thc
government of the Dominion of Can
ada, during the past few weeks, in
stalled exhibits Of the grains and
grasses grown in Western Canada, anG
at the same time showed fruits and
vegetables that were grown there.
None of these was placed in cOmpeti-
ton with the homegrown article. rut
to judges and others there came the
full understanding of what it would
mean to the local exhibitor if they
were. The Western Canadian-and
many Of the exhibits were grown by
former Americans-doeS not lay claim
to any special dispenSatiOn OF intelli-
gence in the matter Of the culture OF
the articles placed on exhibition, but
willingly gives credit to the soil. the
climate, and such other indigenous
conditions as the country as n whole
possesses, as being factors that bring
about the largest yields Of the best Of
wheat, oats. barley, flax and rye, a
well as vegetables. AS is pointed on;
by the gentlemen in charge Of these
exhibits, n quite evident to all, the
possibilities of growing vegetables and
grain such as are shown can only eXis,
where conditions such rs have been
mentioned exist.
In speaking Of eating fresh straw
berries and green corn in the middle
Of October | should not fail 10 refer
TO the beautiful bouquets that adorned
The table. the s%ideboard. the window
stills. and almost every other available
vacant place in the room. Flowers =
there were asters, phlOX. gladiOli, peo.
MES, pOppies, and l can't remember
the names Of them all, but they were
there. Taken right from the garden,
having a fragrance that gave the room
tropical cOlOrs, and filed it with mar
velOusly delightful perfumes. 1t was
a very pretty sight. Then I went out
into the garden, and took a photo Of it.
1t was simply wonderful. / asked the
good lady how she managed it. She
said she had always been fond Of flow
ers. In her old home. in one of the
central states, she carried OIL garden
horticulture, and had been acknowl-
edged successful. "But my!" she said.
II never got such bloom. and such a
variety a. l do here" She admitted
it was Il lot of work. the watering, the
wedding. the hoeing. but such work
was a pleasure.
Well, such is some of the life in
Western Canada, and as / left the
farm home / concluded that much of
u surroundings are as we ourselves
make NEUTRALITY-SUSPICIOUS..