8 



PROCESSING OF JAPANESE PERSIMMONS. 



the dealer supplying the gas. If no reducing valve is used, sudden 

 stoppages will usually occur during the outflow due to the choking 

 of the orifice in the needle valve with solid carbon dioxid. Such 

 stoppage is usually followed by a sudden rush of gas, and very close 

 watching is necessary if annoying accidents are to be avoided. 



Processing experiments were conducted at the nurseries of the 

 Griffing Bros. Co. at Macclenny, and at the Glen St. Mary nurseries 

 at Glen St. Mary, using in all cases fruit freshly picked from the trees. 

 Two of the iron tanks were used at each locality. At the outset it 

 was supposed that the control of the humidity was an important 

 feature in processing, and so the treatment of the persimmons was 

 conducted in one of the tanks at each locality, with no attempt made 

 to lessen the very humid conditions which occur during processing, 

 while in the other the humidity was somewhat lessened by dis- 

 tributing about 50 pounds of dry starch among the persimmons. 

 Perceptible differences in the amounts of moisture which collected at 

 the top of the boxes during the processing period were noticeable in. 

 the experiments at each locality, but as no injury traceable to exces- 

 sive humidity was observed at any time, the measures taken to lessen 

 it are without importance. 



The experiments in Florida were started September 19 and com- 

 pleted September 27. During this period the diurnal changes in 

 temperature were quite uniform, as shown by recording thermome- 

 ters operated at each locality. The experiments at Macclenny were 

 conducted in a carriage shed, the doors of which were usually kept 

 closed. Here the temperature ranged from 70 to 86 F., with an 

 average of about 77 F. At Glen St. Mary experinents were carried 

 on in an open shed, and the temperature variation was from 73 to 

 99 F., with an average of about 80 F. 



The number of fruits used in process and in check lots and the 

 time required in processing are shown in Table I. 



TABLE I. Time required in processing different varieties of Japanese persimmons. 



1 Approximately. 



