The weekly Floridian. [volume] (Tallahassee, Fla.) 1867-19??, 1883-05-01
HOW TO PACK vEGETA sal
ElbR SHIPMENT.

lou are certainly right IN saying that
if the farmers and growers would pack
their goods as they should they would
not long have to complain of there being
no buyers in their home markets for their
products. AS regards cotton, grain, su-
gar, syrup, etc, am not competent to
speak, but, as regards truck, may be
able to give a few hints. | will this
time confine myself to one article, viz:
"The Irish Potato
There is probably no crop that can Ike
relied upon to yield as handsome and Ger
tain returns as that if properly managed, =
especially in section in every respect so
propitious for its cultivation as Jefferson
county. We will assume that every
trucker" knows what varieties are best
and understands their cultivation, but
from the condition in which they arrivra'
at our large Northern markets, it is e,i-
dent that they still have great deal to
learn as regards proper packing and;
handling.
First and foremost, it is more essentials
that the potatoes should be perfectly mas
turel than that they should arrive into
market a week or two earlier and green.
a ripe dry potato shipped from Jeffct-..
son county to one of the Eastern citiGst
will invariably arrive, if properly packed,
in as sound "A condition as when it left;
while no matter how large, if green when.
shipped, the moisture cngendcrs heat anil
they very soon decay. :
have seen such unloaded from vesl,;
sci 80 badly decayed that it was almost
impossible to go near them on account at
the smell, and this, too, when they had
only been on the road five or six days.
In such cases, they Of course prove an
entire loss, whereas if they had been lefs
in the ground week or ten days longer
they would have brought readily IL or 81,
per barrel
1t is a well-known fact that fruit and
vegetables generally increase in bulk
greatly the last few days of their reach.
ing maturity, and that increase alone
would be we'll worth waiting for, if there
were no other advantages.
After digging and exposing a little
while to dry the potatoes should be sorted
into three grades The largest and finest
barreled by themselves, and the barrea
marked, plainly, primes. Medium sized
ones also by themselves and marked sed
onds, and the balance denominated culS
In packing the barrel ought to be placed
on a b ,ard, instead of soft, Welding
ground, SO as to permit of its being weG
shaken down with every basket full pus
in. 1t should be roundly heaped up and
the head pressed in with press such al
is used in packing apples and potatoes
throughout the Northern and Westcrh
States
When put up rs above they will always
find a ready sale, no matter how glutted
the market may be, aud at from 80 cent?
to 81 per barrel more than if less carefully
packed.
Any one putting up his potatoes j.:
this manner would soon find his brand
sought after, and would have no difficulty
in disposing Of his crop by contract, 3
very remuncrative figures. !
have often seen Il few line potatoes
mixed in a barrel of what would otAeS
wise be denomnated culls, and they weie
evidently placed there to make it sell f},
a barrel of average good potatoes. n
this object, however. it invariably faila,
tor buyers are quick to see their advan-
tage, and where goods do not run uniform.
always want to buy the entire package ii
the value it would have if the lot were
like the poorest-disrcgarding the few cf
better quality.
In other words, while few small cu!l
potatoes will lower the price of an other
wise good barrel few good ones will nos
raise the price of barrel of inferior quaI-
ity. Hence the importance of careful
grading.
Round-hooped barrels should he used
when possible, for, although they scarcely
hold any more, they look larger, hence
bring more in market, while freight anA
carriage are precisely the same.
Last, and scarcely least, comes the sub
ject OF cooperage, about which it is un-
necessary to go into details, except to say
that if this were always carefully attended
to, and the barrels head lined top and
bottom, so many would not come with
their contents partly gone, and thus grest
loss would be avoided.-G. l.. Lamrence
IN WonticeHo Constitution.