262 



THE CANADIAN HORTICULTURIST 



November, 1913 



Grading and Packing 



Orchard of Chiirles Pafchctt. CookSTiUe, Ont. 



of the hardest for the beginner to master, 

 it will be dealt with more in detail. 



In the straight pack, before the lid is 

 nailed on, the apples at either end of the 

 box should come up a little better than 

 flush with the top. With the diagonal 

 the ends should be a little higher — about 

 one-fourth to three-eigths of an inch in 

 all. Then from either end there should 

 "be a gradual bulge amounting at the mid- 

 dle of the box to about one and a half 

 inches. Thus, when the lid is nailed on, 

 there will be a bulge of practically three- 

 fourths of an inch each on top and bot- 

 tom. Less bulge is desirable with the 

 straight packs on account of their un- 

 yielding nature. There is no settling of 

 the apples into the crevices as in the di- 

 agonal. 



The proper bulge is obtained, in the 

 straight pack especially, by selecting ap- 

 ples that are a trifle smaller for the ends. 

 With apples that are being packed on the 

 cheek, it sometimes becomes necessary to 

 turn the end rows flat to secure the de- 

 sired bulge, and, at the same time, have 

 the ends low enough. When it becomes 

 necessary to do this, the ends of two lay- 

 ers at one end of the box, and the ends of 

 the other two at the other end of the box 

 should be turned, otherwise one end will 

 Ije two high and the other too low. 



SBCUKiNG TBE BULGE 



In the diagonal pack, the small spaces 

 left at the end of each layer aid mater- 

 ially in securing the proper bulge. This, 

 and pulling the apples tighter towards 

 ihe centre of each layer, is sufficient to 

 give the necessary bulge in wrapped fruit. 

 By packing closer in the centre you close 

 the pockets between the apples more, the 

 next layer will not sink so deep, and, 

 therefore, the centre is built up. The 



ends being left a little looser, the pockets 

 are opened a little more, the apples drop 

 in further and do not build up so high. 

 Practice will give the knowledge of just 

 how high to pack the centre or how loose 

 to pack the ends. 



When the fruit is not wrapped, this 

 difference in firmness cannot be made and 

 the packer has therefore to take advan- 

 tage of the small irregularities and differ- 

 ences in size of the apples. This differ- 

 ence in size must not be so great as to 

 attract attention. It is essential to begin 

 the bulge with the first layer of fruit and 

 to pack each layer with the same end in 

 view. 



In finding a pack too flat it is usually 

 no use to repack the top layer, as the 

 trouble probably extends through the 

 box. The bulge should form an un- 

 broken arch so that the pressure of the 

 lid will be equally distributed over the 

 fruit. A bulge high in the centre and 

 dropping off to the sides will not be held 

 firmly in place by the cover, causing the 

 whole pack to become loose. 



WEAPPEB AND UNWEAPPED FKUIT 



In wrapped fruit the top of the box 

 should be packed last, while in unwrap- 

 ped fruit the top is packed first. Packing 

 the top of wrapped fruit first is a poor 

 method and should be discouraged, as 

 the smooth side of the wrapped fruit has 

 to be turned down, and the consequent 

 loose ends projecting, are very confusing 

 to the packer, making his work consider- 

 ably slower. 



Only number one fruit and possibly 

 number two of the winter varieties should 

 be wrapped. All fruit intended for dis- 

 tant markets as Great Britain, should be 

 wrapped, unless unwrapped fruit is de- 

 desired, as the fruit carries much bet- 

 ter. Wrap, too, for markets where there 

 is no competition with wrapped fruit 

 from other districts. 



Smoothness and finish to a pack are 

 very essential. Contrary to a fairly com- 

 mon belief, the box alone will not sell 

 the apples. The high prices rely in a 

 large measure on the appearance of the 

 pack, which should be regular in size and 

 perfect in alignment. If the fruit is 

 wrapped, smoothness of wrap is of great 

 importance. 



PILE BOXES ON THEIB SIDES 



Nail the lids on the boxes as they are 

 packed, and nile them on their sides, as 

 the sides, having no bulge, do not bruise 

 the fruit. 



Clear the oackine table several times 

 during the day so that no fruit becomes 

 bruised from continually "pawing over." 



Avoid turning the stem of one apple 

 to the cheek of another, for the stem is 

 likely to puncture the cheek and destroy 

 the apole, especially for storage. This is 

 the objection to the riff-raff pack". 



When wrapping use the proper size 

 paper for the apple. Using paper too 

 large or too small increases the labor of 



wrapping, and further gives a defective 

 pack. Use pajx-r nine l)y nine inches for 

 fruit of the general size of .Snows, ten by 

 ten for medium sized fruit — that is fniif 

 of about two and three-quarters to tin. ■■ 

 and one-quarter inches diameter. l-or 

 larger fruit use ten by twelve and twelve 

 by twelve. 



Mark the numl>er of apples in the box, 

 rather than the tier. The designation 

 by tiers is misleading to buyer and con- 

 sumer alike. 



One last point : Keep your pack above 

 the requirements of the "Fruit Marks 

 Act." 



Why NorJolk Apples Lead 



J. E. Smith, B.S.A. , Simcoc, Ont. 



For several years past Norfolk county 

 has occupied the premier place with her 

 fruit at the Ontario Horticultural Ex- 

 hibition. Bver since the inception of 

 this big fair, she has invariably had a 

 wide margin on the remainder of the 

 province with her splendid display of 

 high quality apples. 



The outsider naturally is led to be- 

 lieve that Norfolk county must be one 

 large orchard with something excep- 

 tional about the soils and climate that 

 gives to the fruit its high color and 

 quality. But have you ever visited old 

 Norfolk? When you do, you will not 

 be impressed with the extent of her 

 bearing orchards. The outsider must 

 conclude after a trip through the county 

 that it is a mixed farming district, with 

 a slight emphasis on wheat and dairy- 

 ing in some of the townships. 



FEUIT COMES FROM OLD OECHAEDS 



True it is that large areas — even as 

 high as five hundred acres — have been 

 and are being set out to fruit through- 

 out the county, but the older bearing 

 orchards are but of a few acres such as 

 are found almost anywhere over the pro- 



Loading Apple* on the Steamer at Montreal 



