Reporter and farmer. [volume] (Webster, Day County, Dakota [S.D.]) 188?-1946, 1912-01-04

proper storage, adequate transporta.
ton facilities, placing thu fruit on the
market in its season and when 1t Is
commanding a good price. While
there are no hard and fast rules gov
erning the picking of apples, the suc-
cessful orchardist strives TO harvest his
fruit when it has reached its full size
and has developed, in the case Of col
ored varieties, a normal, or, If possible,
a maximum, amount of color. Apples
should not hang until they have begun
TO ripen if a long keeping fruit is de-
sired.
The ability so to grade and to pack
apples that when they are offered for
sale they present an attractive appear
ance because Of uniformity and mini
mum amount Of injury from transpor-
tation Is a valuable asset TO the or
chardlst. This one item determines
largely the success or failure of the
grower to realize the best market price
for his product. In order to present
this attractive appearance the apples
must be Of a nearly uniform size and
color and present few surface deface-
ments. In packing either a barrel or
box the package should be carefully
faced with fruit which should as near
ly as possible represent it's average
contents. Facers, however, may be
somewhat higher colered than the aver
age without seriously misrepresenting
the contents of the package. Barrel
packages are either single or double
faced, usually the latter. In facing a
package the stem end is placed down.
ward. BY tudicious selection of facers
the packer can usually manage to
have a we'll filed layer. Large inter
stices or irregular arrangement of the
fruit in the facer rows detracts mate
rally from the finished appearance Of
the package. Likewise high colored
fruit Should not be mixed with medi-
UNI or low colored fruit In the facer
row. Uniformity in size, arrangement,
color and freedom from blemishes are
four points to be kept I'm mind.
The observance of these details
alone does not. however, insure an at
tractive package when opened. An
other necessary precaution is that the
package shall be sufficiently well filed
so that when headed 1t viii be Just
firm enough to hold the fruit In place
and o so tight as to bruise a con-
siderable proportion Of 1t. A clean,
bright barrel should be used, in which
a plain or corrugated paper cap
should be placed to lessen the bruising
and add TO the attractiyeness Of the
package. The bottom being faced, the
barrel should be half filed with fruit
poured I'm carefully by lowering the
basket well into the barrel and given
a thorough shaking to settle the ap-
pies into place. This operation should
be repeated when the barrel is nearly
full 1t is then filed a trife above
the chimes, the top layer being ar
ranged rs uniformly as possible. The
contents Of the barrel are then press
ed into place with a well padded head
specially prepared for this purpose.
When this false head is removed a
plain or preferably corrugated paper
cap Is added and the top cover press
ed into place with a screw - lever
barrel header and nailed firmly into
place. Tough twigs may he used for
cleating.
When barrels are fed too full the
pressing may lnjure M the apples.
When filed too LIGHT to provide for
shrinkage during shipment the apples
present an even sOrrier appearance.