lost if the owner neglects to exercise intelligence and judgment in 

 picking and handling the fruit. The method of handling the fruit 

 crop is of vital importance. It is the climax of years of labor ; 

 yet just here many fruit growers faiL 



The 'keeping qualities of tlie fruit are influenced hy the time of 

 l)'iclvlii(j. — An apple may be mature when the seeds are colored but 

 yet not ripe from the eaters standpoint. After it is mature the 

 ri[)ening process will go on more rapidly if the fruit remains on tlie 

 tree tlian if it has been picked and stored in a cool place. If 

 exposed to the sun or stored in a warm room it continues to ripen 

 more or less rapidly, depending on the warmth of the room. 

 Apples that are exposed to the sun for some time after picking 

 or are allowed to hang on the trees late in the season may be some- 

 what improved in flavor and appearance, but their season of keeping 

 is nndoubtedly shortened. 



The ripening and decay of fruits folloio each other loithoiU any 

 clearly defined dividing line. — Fruits develop, mature, ripen and 

 decay in shorter or longer period according to their characteris- 

 tics and the manner in which they have been handled and stored. 

 The whole process of ripening under normal conditions is regu- 

 larly continuous and is not divided by clearly marked intervals. 

 An apple loses crispness, becomes mellow, the cells break down and 

 the apple is rotten. While these changes are due to different agents 

 as chemical action and growth of microbes the process is quite 

 gradual. A peach is picked when still hard, but in a tem23erature 

 of 50 degrees F., or above, soon becomes soft and in a few days is 

 reduced to a mushy mass of pulp. If picked when ripe and begin- 

 ning to soften, the life of the fruit is, therefore, relatively shorter 

 than if picked when just mature. In winter fruits the rij^ening 

 (mellowing) process goes on slower than in the summer varieties. 



Tl^e decay of fruits is due to certain ferments^ cheniiccd agents 

 and micro-organisms lohich develoj? under favor ahle conditio7is of 

 temperature. — The ordinary keeping season of fruit may be much 

 prolonged by storing it in a compartment in which a low tempera- 

 ture may be preserved. The germs whicli may bring about the 

 decay of fruits like those which change grape juice from the sweet 



418 



