The Portland daily press., 1876-10-26

THE FARM AND HOUSEHOLD.
Save the AppleS.

and tne severity or the urouth the apple
crop proves unexpectedly large-although in
some portions of the state the market will be
supplied from abroad. When there is an
abundance of fruit, farmers who have much
fall work to do ON the farm are very apt 10
neglect their natural fruit entirely, thinking
that the crop will not bring enough to pay
for the labor of gathering; or else entrust
the work to careless boys. or inexperienced
men, who with sticks and stones strip the
trees of their fruit, and leaves and limbs as
well. Apples thus roughly removed from
the trees, are usually heapei in piles in the
orchard bruised and decaying mass, remain
ing until the cider-mill is ready for them, or
until half-frozen they are housed in the cell
lar or barn. Sometimes the crop is suffered
to remain upon the trees until shaken off by
the wind or frost, and then it is consumed by
the cattle, sheep or swine who roam at will
through the orchard.
ALI such practices we must condemn, not
only as damaging and destructive TO valua-
able farm product, but as promotive of shift
lessness and slovenliness in husbandry. Very
few trees in an orchard bear fruit that is not
worth preserving or turning to some immedi-
ate account, and it should be the aim of
every fruit-raised to make the most of his
varied crop.
Among the native varieties, many of them
belong to the summer or early fall class, and
not having the quality of late-keeping they
must be disposed of as soon as they are gath
cred, for cider, or drying, or domestic con-
sumption, or else fed out to the farm stock.
Rather than waste apples that will keep
through the winter by allowing them to rot
upon the ground, or by overlooking cattle or
swine with them, we consider it is much bet
ter to devise some method for preserving
them, so that if they are valuable as food
for animals, they may be of value as long
time as may be possible, or If at the harvest
they only bring low price, that they may be
kept for higher prices.
We do not doubt that many hard, grabbed
apples, apparently worthless when gathered,
always fed out or ground up-would prove
to possess good and perhaps excellent quail
ties if permitted to mature by keeping them
Ella uOntun VI luOACs niIhOob CtOly HUN
grower raises plenty such fruit, land it might
be well worth while for him to venture a
few experiments of this kind.
Apples that remain sound until the coming
of freezing weather, can be kept after they
are frozen through the winter; and that
course is probably the best to bea adopted,
for the fall, or pershable varieties. This
method has proved successful with grated
fruit when carefully tried and the advantage
of it for early natural fruit is, that it is saved
from immediate decay, and its duration ex-
tended for several months. They may be kept
some in barrels in cold room, or heaps may be
made upon the ground or just under it, and
covered with earth enough to exclude air and
light and throw of the rain. All the care
needed is to see that the apples are kept froz-
en- through the winter and then to remove
and use them as soon as the frost is out in
early spring. 1t pays well to expend the
small amount of labor thus required, in order
hat the domestic animals may have change
of food after the monotonous winter bill of
fare, or that few barrels of new cider may
be made in the spring.
The choicer kinds of native apples may be
buried in pits in the same way that potatoes
and other roots and vegetables are frequently
kept through the winter. If properly ventil-
ated, and protected from the cold, they will
come out in the spring fresh, solid, and crisp,
having sometimes slight earthly favor, and
also a tendency 10 decay after few days ex-
posure to the air.
When the crop is large and cellar room
limited we recommend that the largest,
fairest and soundest apples be sorted, bar
relied and buried in the earth in trenches.
The depth of the trenches will depend upon
the position of the barrels, whether on their
sides or ends. An air space of few inches
may be left above the barrels, and then foot
or two of earth following layer of ever
greens, straw or boards will protect them
from the frost, or from its injurious effects.
The outer covering should be compactly
packed and sloped enough to carry off all
moisture from snow or rain.
In addition to these methods, if we found
ourselves in possession of several hundred
bushels of natural fruit that we could not
save, we should try the French plan now in
vogue for the preservation of green fodder.
By this method corn stalks and leaves, beet
tops, half-grown cabbages and other green
crops suitable for fodder are packed solidly in
trenches foot or two under ground, so that
air and light may be excluded and fermenta-
ton prevented; and thus green sood can be
served out daily to cattle in the fall and early
winter, when pastures are bare and brown,
and when the important products of flesh,
milk and labor are shrinking at the first con-
sumption of dry winter fare. 1t would seem
that some access could be had to such under
ground deposits from the sides Of barn cellars
or outhouses used for the storage of roots
and thus perishable crop could be utilized
and man or beast benefited even after the
approach of winter.
Our suggestions it will be noticed contain
no special novelties, but rather new applica-
ton Of old methods for the preservation OF
the surplus crop Of natural fruit found in
every orchard-which too often is lost by
waste and decay, or worse than lost by being
indiscreetly and profusely fed out to the
injury of the farm stock consuming it.
Wine Adulterati0n i'm France