292 THE CITRUS FRUITS 



The oranges in some cases must be colored or cured by 

 sweating. The sweat-room is an air-tight, fire-proof room 

 built separately from the main packing-house. The heat 

 is provided by kerosene stoves which do not give complete 

 combustion. The hot gases and water vapor fill the sweating- 

 room and envelop the fruit. The temperature is controlled 

 by ventilators. In the sweating process the fruit is kept 

 at a temperature of 100° F. The time of curing varies from 

 three to five days or until the oranges are properly colored. 



The harvesting and the curing of the lemon differs greatly 

 from that of the orange. The lemons are usually picked from 

 ten to twelve times a year. The heaviest pickings of the 

 lemon come in March and April, while the lightest pickings 

 come in August and in September. This roughly divides 

 the lemons into a fall and a spring crop. The summer crop 

 is usually rushed to the market while the winter crop is held 

 until later in the season. 



The method of picking the lemons from the tree is similar 

 to that of the oranges. The chief difference between the 

 two fruits is that the lemons are always picked by the use 

 of a ring. The lemons are harvested while green and there- 

 fore a ring is used to determine the size and maturity of the 

 fruit. The picking rings are made of iron wire. The rings 

 vary slightly in size and during the summer a ring 2\ inches 

 in diameter is used while during the winter a larger size, 

 namely, 2f inches, in diameter, is used. The larger ring is 

 used in the winter because the fruit will be kept longer and 

 a greater amount of shrinkage will take place. 



After the lemons reach the packing-house they must go 

 through a curing process. The curing is done by subjecting 

 the fruit to a sweating. The sweating of the lemons is for 

 the purpose of quickly changing the green color to a light 

 yellow color. 



The lemons should be sweated alternately for the best 

 results. The air of the sweating-room should be kept satur- 

 ated with moisture all the time. If the air is allowed to 

 become dry the lemons shrivel quickly. The temperature 

 of the sweating chamber should be held around 90° F. 



The winter lemons are usually stored and held for spring 



