16 FRUIT-GROWER, ST. JOSEPH, MO. 



take them immediately to the storage house, where 

 they can be sorted and packed more at leisure. 

 Under all circumstances, however, they ought to be 

 put into as cool a place as possible with the least 

 possible delay. In handling fancy grades of stock in 

 barrels, it is probably best to pick the fruit, sort, 

 pack and head it up at once and put it immediately 

 into cold refrigerator cars, sending these off as expe- 

 ditiously as possible to the cold storage plant. This 

 method is actually practiced on a large scale by some 

 of the best growers. There is no extraordinary 

 expense in it, in fact nothing out of common except 

 the expense of the refrigerator cars, which has been 

 shown to be. -entirely profitable with good fruit. 



When apples are taken to the temporary storage 

 houses without sorting, it is best to grade them over 

 as soon as convenient. This is more necessary if the 

 grade of the fruit is low. If there is considerable 

 fungus, they should be sorted at once, all first-grade 

 fruit being put by itself. In case the fruit comes 

 from the trees in extra good condition, with no fun- 

 gus and very few culls, there is not so much urgency 

 in this early sorting. In general, however, it is a 

 mistake to Leave the fruit ungraded, as is sometimes 

 done, up to the time when it is sent to market, 

 which may be late in the spring. 



Sorting Apples 



The grading of the fruit is extremely important 

 from every point of view. There is hardly anything 

 Which affects the price secured more than this. 

 Many fine apples bring outrageously low prices 

 because they are carelessly, ignorantly, or deceit- 

 fully graded and packed. 



Proper grading requires good judgment and con- 

 siderable experience. The man who sorts and packs 

 the fruit should be the expert of the gang. The man- 



