The Oakley herald. [volume] (Oakley, Idaho) 1908-1961, 1914-11-27
(By r. b. RUSHING.)

The best method / have ever tried
Is picking into baskets. These bas
kets should be about half-bushel bas
kets. with drop handles.
The baskets should be smooth on the
inside; that is. free from strips around
tne inside or bottom. They should be
iined with burlap to prevent bruis.
ing, and short iron hook should be
attached to che handle to suspend the
pasket from the limbs, SO as to enable
the packer to use both hands. The
great advantage In using the basket
l md lies in the fact largely that II
.ne apples are carefully placed In
IL they are not bruised.
Inc worst objections that have to
tne baskets are that they are NOT so
mandy as the sack, and that some
times careless pickers are disposed
10 loss apples into them as they set
upon the ground or hang on a limb
few feet away.
MY experience Is that apples packed
from the table and Immediately placed
IN cold storage Qf they are to be put
IN cold storage) will give by far the
best results.
This method adds from two to four
months to the keeping of the fruit.
You cannot afford to let your fruit
lie under the trees or In a building
Tor two or three weeks before you
barrel
Every days delay In packing and
shipping will cost you money and
quality in your fruit, and IL you are
not the loser, the party who buys 1t
is
Fruit grown In q warm latitude. or
harvested during warm September
or October must be quickly handled
But when properly handled at picking
time. as l have suggested, there VIII
not be much room for complaint.
A good barrel is essential IL you
wish to store your fruit, and have 1t
keep well and sell well. We suffer
from lack Of good cooperage
A tight barrel is the best, and the
better 1t Is made the better results
you will have. There will be less loss
from shrinkage of fruit. from rats and
mice and other causes.
In my orchard l have eight pickers
and six sorters and barrelers In each
gang. A good strong table. construct
ed of light. strong material 10 pro-
vided
This table Is set In the center of 16 |
trees; sometimes II the fruit Is scarce
and the trees are very small the ia |
BILE Is set In the center of "a or SO |
trees.
Four or six rows are carried for |
ward at once and the table is moved |
along the center rows and set In the |
middle OF the square at each move.
usually have one man who nails |
he hoops. the headliners, and takes |
out the heads of barrels, preparing |
hem for filling. 1t is quite important
% have headliners, as it prevents loss
n shipping and facilitates the exam
nation and inspection of fruit in stor-
age.
This man usually heads up the bar
rels when ready. A second man does
he facing, and the third, who should |
be good apple man and foreman OF |
he gang, empties the baskets and as /
sists In the sorting.
He inspects the fruit as sorted, and
directs the work. This leaves three
men who do nothing but stand at the
able and sort. II the packers are
lot able to keep the table supplied.
nan from the table is put into the
rees to pick until the balance is re-
Itored
If you have good fruit and 1t is
worth money In the market to warrant
fou In so doing. you should make two
trades: One strictly No. 1. or fancy
irade; and another, which will take
ruit that is slightly defective, but
rood for immediate use, commonly
ermed No. 2, in the market.
Usually It will pay as well or bet
er to sell this No. fruit to the evap-
rator or the cider mill, instead of
,utting II in expensive barrels. tand
o this add the cost of freight and
getting no more, and
perhaps not as much net as you would
ave realized in bulk.
Another advantage in selling to the
ider mill or evaporation is that you
AXE 1t out of the market of green
ruits and transfer it to another of
ried fruit, where 1t does not come
nto competition with your good green
ruit
Face the barrels with good, we'll
olored apples of even size. put in a
Iuit on top of the facers, then ill
our barrel with apples free from
lemish or worm holes of a size small
r than two and one half inches in di-
meter for Ben Davis and Jonathan, /
= two and one-fourth for Winesap. {
fettle the fruit In barrel as each ]