Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1889-09-14
CHEsTNUTs ARE NEARLY RIPE,
And the Crop Is Going to be the Biggest
Known for Many Years.

1.-THE chestnut crop this fall is going to be the
biggest that has bsen known for many years"
said a commission merchant on Aoaisiana
avenus yesterday to a STAR reporter. Every
other year the big crops come ordinarily with
poor ones in between, but the harves, that is
coming now. according to the reports We get
viii be almost unprecedented. The same story
reaches Us not only from Virginia but from all
parts of the country. OF course the nuts wont
be ripe for gathering until after the equinoctial
frosts, which open the burrs Then come
high winds and scatter the tiny fruit
from the shaken bough5 over the ground This
is where the little chincapin has an advantage
over It's bigger cousin, tie chestnut-it does
not wait FOR frost 70 ripen. Already the chin
capins have made their appearance in the mar
ket, and the bushes that bear them are yielding
a generous load. In Prince William county,
Va, and Prince Georges county, Md, they
grow Wild in vast quantities the bushes SO close
together that it IS difficult to make ones way
through them. For my part think the chin
capin better favored than any ehestnut-the
only thing against il is its size.
'.And where do the che5tuuts come from?"
WHERE THE cHEsrNUTs COME FROM.
CHOSE we get here are the Virginia nuts;
they are the finest and largest Of all, thong h
possibly the ones grown in New Hamphire and
northern Massachusetts, have even sweeter
favor. The latter, however. are smaller. The
great chestnutProducIng area OF Virginia in-
cludes portions OF Rappahannock, Green, Nell
son. Madison and Amherst counties, up to the
foothills on the south side OF the Blue Ridge.
The nuts are mostly picked by children, from
whom they are bought by the Country grocers
and traders, who III turn sell them to the whole
sale men Ike ourselves, on commission or
otherwise. Enormous quantities Of them are
sent to Norfolk. where they are passed over
long sleeves. with small holes at the beginning
and bigger ones further on, by which they are
assorted according to size, to be subsequently
scaled in price accordingly. for sale TO the
jobber, who sells by the bag to the retailer"
IN THE ALLEGHANIKs.
ais not the Allegheny legion great produc-
ing center Of chestnuts?"
''Yes. indeed. 1t is from that quarter that
the west and north are chiefly supplied. Chest
nuts can be transported thence more promptly
than from Virginia to Chicago, which is the
main distributing center for the northwest
But when the Allegheny crop fails Chicago
sends It's buyers TO Norfolk. and prices rise
with the demand for the Virginia product The
crop in Massachusetts, and New Hampshire Is
becoming less every year. owing TO the reck-
less way III which the Trees are being cut
down"
wOR9IY OCCUPANTS.
n.
nv opinion. suggested the newspaper man, lis
the frequency Of the worm III it,
You may well say So" replied the commits
sion dealer. ''IEa. same worn cost Inc $500 al
one lick Last autumn. owing to the delay Of a
frelgLJ tram that was bringing me several hun
bred bushels of cAcstnuts that had purchased
outright. The heat got into them and they all
had TO be thrown away On their arrival. What
L mean by the heat Is some mysterious action
that takes place IN q barrel. saw, of cAestnuts
producing warmth. so that If you plunge your
hand deep into the barrel after II has been
standing for several days it will feel quite hot
The heat develops the germs Ofthe worms very
quickly and in short time the nuts viii all be
spoiled. When you buy chestnuts choose the
red ones; Il they are black 1t is likely that they
have been heated"
lis the worm born in the nut, or does ii make
its way into the fruitr'
THE DEVELOPMENT OF THE WORM GERM
"Both, ahoG.d say; though that has always
been considered puzzle. l have no doubt
myself that the germ Of the destroyer is in the
chestnut originally, existing in the tree itself
and only awaiting favorable conditions to de-
yelop. These conditions arrive when the ripe
nut is warned By fermentation or otherwise
Then the animal quickly reaches the adult stage
OF its being, and, having deYoured It's own pro
Vision ready at hand, attacks other nuts as fas
as \. can conSume them successfully. Chestnut
arr some times ertlncI9Ily heated, FOR shippint
to distant point, to dry out the moisture
Which would otherwise aid fermentation
But there i no way to keep them fresl
for any length of time save by cold
been applied very successfully Z
chestnut5, and il IL no uncommon thing in 6
fine season iOr single New York dealer to
put away 10000 bushels Of them on ice. They
can be kept in that way indefinitely, so thai
people who can afford the luxury may have
prime chestngts al the year round It wa.
the nssualyyet spring and summer that made
the crop Tor this tai promise so bountifuIly
There j nothing chestnuts Ike so much as wet
and dSy year always yields o poor harvest
They are tckLsh things to handle any way. Tc
avoid chance Of spelling they should always be
shipped by express, which costs money. anc
the market value IS so capricious that YOU
stock worth 80 bushel today may not bring
50 bushel tomorrow. You are doing well i
your prime ehestnuts have only one worm Il
ton