318 MINNESOTA STATE HORTICULTURAL SOCIETY. 



Cider and Vinegar a By-Product of the Minnesota Orchard. 



W. G. BRIERLEY, ASSISTANT PROF. OF HORTICULTURE, UNIVERSITY FARM, ST. PAUL. 



This discussion will be a continuation of the subject pre- 

 sented at the winter meeting of last year. Our study of the 

 cider and vinegar making possibilities of Minnesota apple vari- 

 eties has gone forward another year with results which may be 

 of interest at this time. 



Apples of as many varieties as could be secured were used, 

 some coming from University Farm, some from Excelsior and 

 others from La Crescent. In no case was there any marked 

 variation in the cider yield of a given variety from any of the 

 three sources. Chemical analyses showed that the sugar con- 

 tent for a given variety varied somewhat, but not very widely 

 as a general rule. Some of the variations were doubtless due to 

 the varying stages of maturity of the apples or the unavoidable 

 delays in transit. 



Our hand operated presses have shown for the third suc- 

 cessive year that cloth containers, or "press cloths," for the 

 pomace, together with press boards to provide drainage, give the 

 highest yield of cider. If the pomace is ground reasonably fine 

 and well pressed, the "press cloth" machine will almost always 

 nearly double the cider yield obtainable in the "barrel" or "drum" 

 machine. No one would advocate the throwing away of a "drum" 

 type of machine, but for anyone about to purchase a press, the 

 press cloth machine would appear to be the most satisfactory in 

 regard to the amount of cider extracted and the generally neater 

 sort of work done. This type of machine can be found in the 

 "Orchard Queen" press made by the Puffer-Hubbard Company, 

 of Minneapolis. 



No tests have been made with power machines, as these are 

 usually too expensive for the individual grower. Power ma- 

 chines are usually efficient and commonly have the press cloth 

 equipment. Such machines are used by the Excelsior Fruit 

 Growers' Association and by Mr. William Pfaender, of New Ulm, 

 with generally satisfactory results. 



If we consider cider making a rainy day job and the apples 

 as of no value, being culls, it will be seen that the work is not at 

 all expensive. With the hand presses used at University Farm, 

 with labor at twenty-five cents per hour, and with the average 

 production per man per hour nearly ten gallons, the average cost 

 of production of cider has been very close to two and one-half 



