294 THE CITRUS FRUITS 



grown on a healthy tree, free from diseases or scale insects, 

 washing is not always necessary. The appearance of the 

 fruit cannot be improved by washing unless it is grown 

 where it is dry and windy and the fruit is covered with dust. 

 If the fruit is affected with sooty mould which causes black 

 spots it must be washed. 



The fruit is either washed by hand or by machine. 

 Various machines have been invented for this work. A 

 machine which gives good satisfaction is made with a series 

 of brushes. The brushes are slightly larger than scrubbing 

 brushes and are arranged on a chain belt. The fruit is 

 placed on a chute and rolls into a vessel containing water. 

 It is then made to circulate in this vessel between the 

 brushes, and in this way is cleaned. There are several more 

 washing machines, but all are constructed on the same 

 general principles. 



Grading. — The citrus fruit cannot be packed as it comes 

 from the orchard. It must first be graded. All fruits of 

 one size should be sorted out and placed in a given bin. 

 Most of the grading is done by machinery. Scattered 

 along the belt which carries the fruit when it is graded are 

 several men whose duty it is to take out all of the imperfect 

 or defective fruits. The remainder are carried along the 

 belt until they reach the opening of the proper size, where 

 they fall through and are caught in a bin. This method 

 of grading saves time and labor. The fruit of different sizes 

 is collected in a separate bin and can then be packed in a 

 uniform manner. 



The lemons are usually picked with a ring, which makes 

 them approximately one size, and very little if any grading is 

 necessary. The orange requires more grading perhaps than 

 any other citrus fruit. 



Packing. — The citrus fruits are packed either by hand or 

 by machinery. By far the greater percentage is packed by 

 hand. Each fruit is placed in a given position in the box, 

 and uniform packing has been developed to a high degree. 



The fruit is wrapped in paper. Sometimes a monogram 

 or some other pleasing design is printed on the wrapping 

 paper. 



