THROUGH THE MOUTERE.

Dominion, Volume 6, Issue 1677, 18 February 1913, Page 8

THROUGH THE MOUTERE.

APPLE LAND. A trip through tho wonderful llonterc (Kelson) apple-growing ■country is described as follows by our travelling correspondent:—Wo rose by a long, winding road for several miles over the Moutcrc hills., . . This is the wonderful applo country. As we drove along I asked the driver if peoplo imagined that apples could be grown in such land. "Wait till you- get to Houtcre," said he. Well, tho further we got the more unpromising the country.looked. Poor, cold, hungry-look-ing hills loomed up, and what vegetation there was, was stunted fern and manuka. There seemed to be no soil on the siirfnce; just clay, and as for grass, it was almost unseen. The only placo where one noticed it was in tho bottom • of the valleys— chielly fiorin and danthonia. There was also a good deal of gorse all over the district, wearing the most extraordinary appearance. All the bushes wero beautifully trimmed, as if with shears—many wero quite round, and none of any size. It. 6?ems that this is caused by sheep grazing on the gorse, of which, at least in this district, they are exceedingly fond. There being, so to speak, very little grass of any use, but plenty of gorse, the sheep have i found out that it makes excellent feed, and as they are continually on it, it never gets n'chance to grow'to any size. In fact, in sonic places I saw big areas of gorso not over six inches high looking Las smooth lis velvet, all through constant grazing by sheep. Tho settlers told me sheep do very well on it, .fatten well, and grow good wool. It is a pity the sheep in many parts of the. North Island, like Wangaehu and Brunswick, cannot be trained to graze on gorse. I suppose if they had no other feed than thai which the Moutere sheep get, they would in time acquire the habit. As we drove along we fmssed large areas of this poor land, which ind been broken up by the plough; most unpromising looking it was. It would be chopped and harrowed later on, and then planted with fruit trees. By-and-by. wo oaine to Jfildura, a ljirge fruit settlement, which has already been planted one and two years. Apples, jpears, apricots, wero chiefly in evidence, 'and I don't think I ever have had such a surprise as-when I saw 'the wonderful growth' the trees have made. And then we cahio to Montere, a real German settlement. One lias only to hear the names of the settlors to know this, all Germans, and all steady, industrious farmers. . I aaked ono with whom I stayed whatever induced them'to' take up such terriblo country to settle in, whennearly tho whole of. New Zealand could be had for selection. Ho told mo the land was taken up some time' between 1810 and 1850 ,'oy a wealthy gentleman in Berlin, that at was purchased' from the description and maps, and tho settlers were sent out to break in the country. They must have had a.hard struggle at first, as it was nearly all heavy black birch and scrub laud. However, to-day Moutero stands as a monument of what can be done by grfc and industry. The settlers nre comfortably off, and are quite content. Well, here we were at Jloutcrc; the driver pointed out to me the she of tho fruit trees in tho gardens, which had been planted in the early days. They at once dispelled any: idea of tho barren state of the land, so far. as apples and pears are concerned.. The fruit is of splendid .quality, perhaps not quite so large as on richer soil, but the colour and keeping qualities ate of, tho utmost superiority, and that is what counts when a man goes 'fruiWarining. • ', ■. .. ;