242 THREE ACRES AND LIBERTY 



veniently in winter. Dried vegetables can be compacted 

 and shipped or stored with a minimum of risk. String 

 them up to the ceiling of the storeroom or attic. 



A few apples or sweet potatoes or peas or even a single 

 turnip can be dried and saved. Even when very small 

 quantities are dried at a time, a quantity sufficient for a meal 

 will soon be secured. Small lots of dried vegetables, such 

 as cabbage, carrots, turnips, potatoes, and onions, can be 

 combined to advantage for soups and stews. 



In general, most fruits or vegetables, to be dried quickly, 

 must first be shredded or cut into slices, because many are 

 too large to dry quickly, or have skins the purpose of which 

 is to prevent drying out. If the air applied at first is too 

 hot, the cut surfaces of the sliced fruits or vegetables become 

 hard, or scorched, covering the juicy interior so that it will 

 not dry. Generally it is not desirable that the temperature 

 in drying should go above 140 to 150 F., and it is better 

 to keep it well below this point. Insects and insect eggs 

 are killed by the heat. 



It is important to know the degree of heat in the drier, 

 and this cannot be determined accurately except by a ther- 

 mometer. Inexpensive oven thermometers can be found 

 on the market, or an ordinary chemical thermometer can be 

 suspended in the drier. 



Drying of certain products can be completed in some 

 driers within two or three hours. When sufficiently done 

 they should be so dry that water cannot be pressed out of 

 the freshly cut pieces, they should not show any of the natural 

 grain of the fruit on being broken, and yet not be so dry 

 as to snap or crackle. They should be leathery and pliable. 



When freshly cut fruits or vegetables are spread out they 

 immediately begin to evaporate moisture into the air, and 



