140 Mississippi Valley Horticultural Society. 



often do we see orchards filled with the finest of fruit and not marketable. 

 The grower, perhaps, may have tried, but the poor results, owing to the fact 

 that lie had no knowledge of how to prepare his fruit, has discouraged him. 

 When wc realize that from one-fourth to one-third of the selling price of our 

 fruit is added to it by preparing it for the ma/ket we see its importance. 

 Much of the fruit received in market bears evidence of having been tine 

 fruit, yet the way in which it was prepared destroyed largely its value. And 

 from this arises much of the dissatisfaction to the shipper. He claims his 

 fruit to be as good as his neighbor's, and yet the returns are much less, and 

 at once the commission man is denounced as dishonest and has to stand the 

 blame that should rest on the consignor. 



Then there is another class that endeavor to practice economy by using 

 old, or rough, irregular packages, and seem to think because their fruit is 

 fine it will require no pains in putting up, all of which takes from instead of 

 adding to its value. 



Let your wife or sweetheart dress in neat, clean attire and she is admired 

 by all, but attired in a slovenly and dirty niinner, and no one admires. So 

 with your fruit. Display it in neat form and it is desired, otherwise it is not. 



No, gentlemen ; there is no part of fruit raising pays so largely for the la- 

 bor as putting it in shai)e for market, and in that lies much of your success. 

 Don't be afraid of spending money for neat packages, as it adds more to the 

 fruit than it costs. 



THE GATHERING OF FRUIT. 



The strawberry should never be picked while wet. The picker sliould be 

 provided with a tray holding from four to six quart boxes (if they can be 

 shaded the better). All over-ripe fruit should be put in a box by itself, for 

 home use or market, but never for shii){)ing, the small, imjjerfect berries 

 in another, and kept separate. When brought in, the boxes should be in- 

 spected, filled up full, and set in as cool a place as you have until ready to 

 crate. Then each grade of fruit should be crated by itself, and the stencil of 

 the consignee placed on each {;rate, also a stencil No. 1 or 2, designating the 

 grade of fruit. The number of your stencil soon becomes known, and the 

 reputation of your fruit becomes established according as you are honest in 

 putting it up. 



Let me say in this connection that I doubt the propriety of branding with 

 your private .stencil, for this reason : Your commission man always goes by 

 the number of your stencil, and then your address is often C()i)ied by unre- 

 liable parties, and you get into trouble. He makes you large quotjitions, and 

 tells you his facilities and advantages over all others for getting high prices, 

 and persuades you to change just at a time your fruit is becoming estab- 

 lished in the hands of your regular house. He makes you big returns, and 

 gets you to solicit others on the strength of his good sales, until he has your 

 confidence, and you find out only too late that you have been beaten. I do 

 not say this is always the case, but m my times it is. Any good, reliable 



