GATHERING AND STORING FRUIT 41 



finally closing. The fruit may be placed in two or three 

 layers, or singly. The best temperature we consider 

 to be about forty degrees to forty-five degrees. Cool 

 storage, with co-operative fruit growing, would revolu- 

 tionise our home productions in a commercial sense if 

 thoroughly applied." 



Mr Bunyard writes with reference to rational storage 

 for apples. " My building has often been quoted and 

 described. It may shortly be called a common-sense 

 store, but I cannot too strongly impress upon all those 

 who wish to keep their fruit firm, fresh, and for a long 

 period, that it is most important that it should first 

 be well matured on the trees, then be very carefully 

 gathered, and finally be laid without bruising on the 

 shelves, and that the floor be always kept moist. 



1 ( Capital storage is ready to hand in the many oast 

 houses which exist in Kent and Sussex, as the hops are 

 generally gone and the oast cleaned out before the 

 apples for late keeping are gathered. There is no 

 doubt that these substantial buildings are suitable both 

 on the ground floors and on the first floors, but the 

 former keeps the fruit best. 



"The usual plan is for women to sort the fruit as it 

 comes in, and to lay it out carefully on clean straw in 

 heaps of one sort up to three feet deep. After these 

 heaps have sweated, they are slightly covered to keep 

 off dust, etc., and then as frost becomes probable they 

 are covered one foot deep with straw quite fresh and 

 clean. In these heaps the fruit keeps sound and 

 plump, and they are stored into January or March 

 according to the market price. 



" Naturally a dry fruit like Blenheim Orange keeps 

 better than Wellington which rots into a pulp. But 

 the great difficulty is that so many kinds are grown that 

 a continual supply of well-known sorts cannot be kept 

 up. I have advocated the erection of large stores, 



