The Watertown weekly leader. [volume] (Watertown, Jefferson County, Wis.) 1912-1917, 1915-11-09

The possibilities of good or common
storage for the apple crop and the
profit that good storage room might
enable the grower to secure are often
neglected. A good storage room would
enable many growers to supply local
market for large part of the apple
season. Many small towns in orchard
districts are poorly supplied with ap-
pies during the winter months, be-
cause the growers depend upon the
commercial storage houses, which are
located only at the larger towns. The
cost of handling and shipping to and
from storage may be saved in many
cases by providing storage rooms that
are clean and well ventilated, and in
which the temperature may be well
controlled.
The first requisite for successful
storage is clean, sound fruit, picked
before it begins to soften, carefully
handled, and placed in storage with
as little handling and delay as is. pos
sible. The grower should take every
advantage Of cool nights to get the
temperature of his room as low as
possible, closing all openings when
the temperature outside is higher,
and opening when the outside tenn
perature is lower than it is inside
Fruit picked on a hot day may well
stand in the shade until the next
morning, when it will usually have
cooled a considerable number of de-
grees.
At the Kansas experiment station
a cave was made for storing apples,
"a feet long, IL feet 6 inches wide,
and z feet high, inside measurements.
The side walls were eight inches in
thickness, of concrete made OF one
part cement, three parts sand and
five parts crushed stone. The inside
of these walls received finish coat
of one-half inch thick Of one part &C.
ment and one part screened sand, and
troweled smooth with a steel trowel.
The slab forming the top of the
cave was made eight and One-half
inches in thickness, of concrete made
Of one part cement, two parts sand
forced with fve-eighths-inch square
twist bars, spaced four and one-half
inches on the center, and embedded
three-fourths of an inch above the
bottom of the slab. The floor was
made three and one-half inches in
thickness, as follows: Base, three
inches in thickness, made of one part
oo71f 10 re- 0f @h0
top coat one-half inch in thickness,
made of one part of cement and one
part Of screened sand, and troweled
smooth with a steel trowel.
The top contained the three tile
ventilators and the bottom four ven
tilators-as illustrated-and the front
contained a door 4 by feet This
door was made in two sections, hav-
ing dead-air space of four inches
between them. Each section was made
Of two thicknesses of flooring nailed
together at an oblique angie, after the
manner of an ice-house door.
This cave was constructed by con-
tract, and cost, complete, not includ-
ing excavation, approximately $500.
Where sand and stone could be easily
obtained fruit grower could prob
ably construct similar cave for a
less price.
From the experiments conducted
with such caves, under favorable con-
ditions, and by careful regulation 1t
seems possible to carry good grade
Of hand-picked apples until the first
of March Or later without serious loss.
If the storage cave is located near the
house so that it may receive constant
attention, a storage temperature of 35
degrees F. or lower can be secured by
the first Of December and frequently
much earlier than that. To secure
this temperature the cave door must
be opened each night that the tenn