33'^ 



THE CANADIAN HORTICULTURIST 



lishment of Messrs. Sutton & Sons, Read- 

 ing, Eng., where many interesting things 

 were seen. At the Woburn Fruit Experi- 

 ment Station, Ridgmount. which was also 

 visited, there is a series of experiments in 

 fruit culture which is quite unique. The 

 experiments appear to be very carefully 

 conducted, and the results are striking. 

 In Ireland the Department of Agriculture 



is doing splendid work, and through the 

 countesy of Sir Horace Plunkctt every 

 facility was given mc to gain an insight inta 

 the methods employed by the Department 

 and the work being done. The apple crop 

 in Great Britain and Ireland is light this 

 year owing principally to severe frosts dur- 

 ing the blossoming season, hence good Can- 

 adian fruit should sell at profitable prices. 



THE HANDLING OF THE APPLE CROP * 



G. HAROLD POWELL^ U. S. DEPT. OF AGRI., WASHINGTON. 



A FARM Storage or local warehouse 

 would overcome some of the practi- 

 cal difficulties now experienced in handling 

 the fruit crop. The average fruit grower 

 cannot store the fruit quickly after picking 

 in a distant warehouse. He does not em- 

 ploy enough labor, nor does he grow suffi- 

 cient fruit that ripens at one time to make 

 a carload quickly. A common practice, 

 especially among apple growers, is to hold 

 the fruit in the orchard until a carload is 

 ready for shipment, or the entire crop of 

 fall and winter fruit may be picked before 

 the packing is begun. Under these condi- 

 tions the delayed fruit ripens rapidly and 

 the apples enter the warehouse in all stages 

 of maturity. These naturally break down 

 at various times in the storage season. On 

 the other hand, if the grower sells at the 

 harvesting time he is obliged to accept the 

 price fixed by the temporary condition of 

 the fruit trade. From the business stand- 

 point, it may not be advisable for the aver- 

 age farmer to attempt to store his own fruit 

 and sell it later in the season, but for the 

 specialist in fruit growing, the local ware- 

 house provides a means of holding the fruit 

 in prime condition during the warm fall 

 weather and places him in the most favor- 

 able position to sell it later in the season 

 either to a buyer or on the general market. 



The farm or local storage house is of 

 still greater importance to the gro.ver 

 and shipper of perishable fruits, such 

 as the small fruits, the peach, and 

 the pear, in providing a means of 

 properly preparing the fruit for long dis- 

 tance shipment. Many of the losses which 

 occur while fruit is in transit are due to the 

 ripening and to the development of diseases 

 that take place before the temperature of 

 the car is sufficiently lowered, either by 

 ventilation or by the melting of the ice. It- 

 is not uncommon for peaches to reach the 

 market with a loss of five to 30 per cent, in 

 the top layers of the car. This is due to 

 the unequal distribution of the temperature 

 in the average refrigerator car and to the 

 small order of ice. 



From extended experiments in shipping;" 

 peaches from southern to northern- 

 markets in 1904, the United States Depart- 

 ment of Agriculture found that the fruit 

 could be landed in perfect condition and 

 that it could be held in the car a much 

 longer period on arrival at destination wheii 

 it had been cooled to about 40 degrees F. 

 quickly after picking and before loading in 

 the refrigerator cars. The same principle 

 will apply to the export shipment of 

 peaches, pears and early apples, and to the 

 distant shipment of small fruits. 



Extract from an address delivered at the last annual meeting of the Ontario Fruit Growers' Association. 



