The Value of Careful Packing and Handling. 141 



house will make you more money in the end, than to keep changing as each 

 may flatter you with big prices. The better way is to select your houses in 

 such cities as you expect to ship to, and continue with them through the 

 season. 



I leave this, however, for discussion. After your fruit is carefully crated 

 and marked, it should be taken to point of shipment in a spring wagon, and 

 never in a jolt wagon, as the latter jolts and packs the fruit down, bruising 

 it, and thus rendering it less liable to carry safely. Care should also be taken 

 with the fruit while awaiting transportation, that it does not sit either in the 

 sun or rain. It should enter the car in as dry and cool condition as possible. 

 What has been said of the strawberry will apply to the raspberry, except 

 to the red, which should be shipped in pint boxes, with same surface as the 

 quart box. 



Grapes ship best in five or ten pound baskets; or, for long shipment, when 

 properly packed, they carry and sell well in stands of four trays each — a 

 tray containing twelve to fifteen pounds. The dry grapes should be picked 

 off, and where the bunch is poorly filled, it is best to discard it, and the good 

 ones packed in with care, and as tight as possible without bruising. 



Peaches, pears and earlj' apples sell best in one-third bushel boxes. Peaches 

 and pears should be carefully picked, and all over-ripe fruit discarded, and 

 each variety packed by itself, and of uniform size. The fruit should be laid 

 in the boxes carefully, pressed in so that when the lid is nailed on the fruit 

 can not move. When so packed it carries a long distance. This style of 

 packing will also apply to tomatoes, always bearing in mind that it is dan- 

 gerous to pack either fruit or vegetables while wet. 



I find many raising early apples, and some even later varieties, who allow 

 them to drop off or shake them, which only indicates wa^t of knowledge in 

 the business, or a degree of carelessness that a few ventures ought to remedy. 

 Fruit so gathered seldom realizes enough to pay for handling. 



Fall and winter apples should be carefully picked, and packed m new bar- 

 rels, placing the first layer in the bottom of the barrel, with the stems down, 

 using only average sized fruit; then fill up carefully until full, shaking the 

 barrel gently once or twice while filling. Fill well to the top of the staves; 

 put on the head, and press into place with lever or screw. After the head 

 is nailed in, turn the barrel and mark plainly the variety of fruit. No fruit 

 or vegetables should be mixed in packing, as no two varieties cook or eat 

 alike, and it only diminishes the value of your goods. 



Great care should be observed in marking, so that when received by your 

 commission man, he knows at once the varieties, and puts on sale without 

 delay those least liable to keep. If not marked, he has no knowledge of his 

 stock. A customer comes in and calls for certain varieties, but the seller 

 does not know whether he has it in stock or not; in a short time he dis- 

 covers some ripe varieties, which could have been sold if known to be in 

 stock, decaying badly, and they are at once rushed on the market, only to 

 be slaughtered. 



