Durango semi-weekly herald., 1903-12-31

shipping season over the longest pos
sibie time in order to avoid congestion
and the delays In shipping the fruit.
In localities where the entire crop is
sometimes ruined by the bitter rot
after the fruit Is half grown the pick
ing is often begun early in the season
in order to secure the largest amount
OF perfect fruit.
The Investigations Indicate. how
ever. tina. the immature and partly
colored fruit has not always the best
keeping quality. On the ether hand
an apple that is not evergreen and
which has attained full size and high
color. but Is still hard and firm when
picked. equals the less mature fruit
and often surpasses II. The more ma
ture fruit is superior in flavor and tex
tIre, and is often more attractive to
the purchaser and therefore of greater
money value. 1t retains Its plumpness
longer and is less subject to apple
scald If, however, the fruit is not
picked until overripe 1t is already near
the end OF its life history and will de-
teriorate rapidly unless stored soon
after picking in the low temperature.
THE experiments Indicate that so
far as maturity is concerned the Ideal
keeping apple is one that is fully
grown. highly colored. but still hard
and firm when picked. Apples that
are to be stored in local cold stor-
age house to be distributed to the mar
kets in cooler weather may be picked
much later tnan fruit requiring ten
days. or more in transit, but the use OF
the refrigerator car makes the picking
possible when the fruit must be in
transit for considerable time in warm
weather in reaching a distant storage
house.
at has been found that there is a
close relation between the degree of
maturity OF the fruit when picked and
its subsequent susceptibility to scald.
Apple scald is one OF the most serious
difficulties with which the fruit storer
has to contend The nature of the
trouble is not well understood, but it
is supposed to be caused by ferment
disease and Is in no way connected
with the action of parasitic organisms.
such as mold or bacteria. 1t appears
to be closely connected with the
changes that occur in ripening after
the fruit is picked, and is most injur-
ious in Its effects as the fruit ap-
proaches the end of its life.
The scald always appears first on
the green or less mature side of an
apple. The portions grown in the
shade and under-colored are therefore
most seriously affected. When the
apple crop is picked before it is ma
tured the fruit is more susceptible to
scald than it would have been later in
the season. as the more mature and
more highly colored fruit Is less sus-
ceptible to injury.
In the practical handling Of or
chards the fundamental corrective OF
scald lies in practicing those cultural
and harvesting methods that develop
maturity and highly colored fruit.
The picking of the fruit when too
green. dense-headed trees that shut
or season that causes the fruit to ma
ture later than usual and makes 1t
still green at picking time-these are
among the conditions that make 1t
particularly susceptible TO the develop
ment of the scald.
The removal of an apple from the
tree hastens its ripening. After pick
ing the fruit natures more rapidly
than 1t does when growing On the tree
and maturing at the same time The
rapidity of ripening increases as the
temperature rises, and the more ma
ture the fruit when picked the less
rapidly the maturing processes seem
to progress.
Fruit that is grown abnormally
large seems to ripen relatively faster
than medium sized fruit, and differ
ent varieties vary widely in the rapid
ity with which they pass through their
normal lite history. Therefore, from
the theoretical standpoint, any condi.
tion in the management of fruit that
causes 1t to ripen after it Is picked
shortens its life in the storage house,
for il Is already so much nearer the
end of its life history when stored.
at is probable that large proper
tion of all the difficulties with apples
in cold storage is due to delaying the
storage OF the fruit after 1t Is picked.
This is especially true in hot weather,
and in fruit that comes from sections
where the autumn months are unusual
ly hot.
IF the fruit is delayed in piles in
the orchard or in piles or in packages
in closed buildings, where the ventila-
ton is poor; il transportation is de-
layed or the fruit is detained at the
terminal point. the ripening progresses
rapidly and the fruit may already be
near the point of deterioration. or may
even have commenced to deteriorate
from scald or mellowness or decay
when the storage house is reached, On
the contrary, If the picking season is
cool, delay during similar period
of time might cause no serious injury
to the keeping quality.
Delaying the storage of the fruit
in warm weather increases Its suscep-
tibility to scald.
From the standpoint of the orchard
ist or apple dealer who cannot secure
quick transportation to distant ware
l,xx.