21^ 



THE CANADIAN HORTICULTURlSi 



shipped out oi Ontario in an improper condi- 

 tion and more or less damage results to the 

 reputation of our Canadian apples. 



" The remedy is for the grower to do his 

 own picking and packing. In this way it 

 is .possible for him to gather the fruit when 

 it is ready for picking, and if it is stored or 

 shipped immediately much better prices can 

 be realized. The Colvert is an excellent 

 example of an apple that is practically 

 valueless when picked at the wrong time. 

 It is too soft to stand any carelessness in 

 handling or packing, and unless picked in 

 the proper condition and shipped at once, it 

 cannot be sold to advantage. For this rea- 

 son many individual growers are unable to 

 realize satisfactory prices for their Colverts 

 and other varieties of the same nature. 



" This is where the value of cooperation 

 comes in. One of the great sources of 

 profit of the Walkerton Cooperative Asso- 

 ciation has been the selling of small lots of 

 apples that in former years were allowed to 

 go to waste. By cooperation the Walker- 

 ton growers have been able to secure suffi- 

 cient quantities of these perishable varieties 



of fruit at one time to enable them to make 

 frequent shipments during the ripening sea- 

 son. In this way they have been able to ob- 

 tain as high prices for this tender fruit as 

 for their best winter stock. 



" Where growers are unable to dispose of 

 their fruit in this way an effort should be 

 made to see the apples are stored iii, a cool 

 place as quickly as possible after picking. 

 They should not be left in the orchard ex- 

 posed to the inclemency of the weather. At 

 Walkerton, when the secretary of the co- 

 operative association receives an order for 

 fruit, the rrerrbers of the association arc< 

 notified that a shipment will be made at a 

 certain date and are asked to deliver their 

 fruit which is ready for shipment at the 

 shipping point at a certain time. This en- 

 ables the association to ship the tender 

 varieties of fruit at the proper time, and 

 many of the members now find these varie- 

 ties among their best paying apples. By 

 cooperating in this way growers will find 

 the Colvert apples a profitable variety be- 

 cause it is hardy and a fairly regular bearer, 

 while the fruit is of good quality." 



BOXES OR BARRELS FOR APPLES 



REGARDING the packing of apples, in 

 boxes or barrels, I have always used 

 barrels and intend using them this year if 

 they are to be had. Boxes that were used 

 in this section last year by shippers were not 

 made strong enough, the boards being too 

 thin. When pressure was applied the box 

 would bulge out and the fruit would still be 

 slack. In this way the fruit would no 

 doubt Jand in England in a crushed condi- 

 tion, even if each apple were wrapped in 

 paper.— (W. M. ElHs, Whitby, Ont. 



Last year I shipped my fruit in boxes, 

 made of beech timber, having the lengths 

 sawed and planed to suit. I nailed one end 

 solid, and had square bands to fit the outside 

 of the other end, and they were ready to fill. 



This year I will plane and saw my own, in 

 my own barn, as I have water power. With 

 this kind of a box and large apples, it was 

 easy to get the right fullness at the end of 

 box. The box was placed on end, pressed 

 down with my knees and nailed. When 

 the Fruit Marks Act came into force such 

 packing had to be. marked XX. I can sell 

 all I can pack and get more than I can 

 through the packing house. I pack in the 

 orchard. — (J. I. Graham, Grey Co., Ont. 



I am going to pack my apples in barrels 

 this season, as I think them the best pack- 

 ages for exporting, unless in sectional boxes, 

 and they are too expensive. Only the very 

 choicest fruit should be packed in boxes. 

 As barrels are getting expensive, and fruit 



