146 



CROPS FOR SPECIAL FARM PRACTICES 



tendency to mold. I have used baskets for permanent packing, but 

 much prefer shallow trays or boxes of uniform size to be packed on 

 each other, so that each box forms a cover for the lower, the upper- 

 most only needing one. Until very cold weather, the boxes can be 

 piled so as to allow the remaining moisture to escape through a crevice 

 about the width of a knife-blade. Before packing, each bunch should 

 be examined, and all injured, cracked, and rotten berries removed with 

 suitable scissors. If two layers are packed in a box, a sheet of paper 

 should intervene. The boxes must be kept in a cool, dry room or pas- 

 sage, at an even temperature. If the thermometer goes much below 

 freezing-point, a blanket or newspaper can be thrown over them, to 

 be removed in mild weather. Looking over them once in the winter 

 and removing defective berries will suffice, the poorest keepers being 

 placed accessibly. Under this treatment the best keepers will be in 

 good edible order as late as February, after which they deteriorate. 



The following is a list of grapes worth noticing, that have been tested 

 for keeping : 



Onions demand a dry cellar, and the bulbs should be thoroughly 

 dried in the sun before they are stored. All tops should be cut away 

 when the onions are harvested. If a cellar cannot be had, the bulbs 

 may be allowed to freeze, but great care must be exercised or the whole 

 crop will be lost. The onions must not be subjected to extremes 

 of temperature, and they should not thaw out during the winter. 

 They can be stored on the north side of a loft, being covered with two 



