HORTICULTURE 133 



Harvesting and Marketing of Small Fruits. Before the fruit 

 begins to ripen, the size and style of package to be used should be de- 

 cided on and a sufficient supply to market at least half of the esti- 

 mated crop should be provided. The demands of different markets 

 vary greatly, but in all of them a neat, clean package will outsell a 

 poorly made or filthy one. The essentials are : ( 1 ) that the packages 

 shall be of the standard size in the markets to be supplied; (2) that 

 they be as light as may be without sacrifice of sufficient stiffness and 

 strength to withstand any ordinary pressure; (3) that they be neat, 

 clean, and attractive in appearance. For the small fruits, except the 

 red raspberries, the quart box or basket (packed in crates containing 

 16 to 64) is the supposed standard package in most markets, though 

 degenerate sizes and forms of this cause a variation of 25 to 30 per 

 cent in its actual capacity. Red raspberries are commonly marketed 

 in pint cups or boxes (packed in crates), while currants are fre- 

 quently sold in the climax baskets so largely used in shipping grapes. 



Where a home trade is supplied, the same packages, if carefully 

 handled, can be used several times, but for shipment to any consider- 

 able distance the "gift" package seems destined to soon supplant the 

 old "return" crate. 



With packages provided, the necessity for some sort of packing 

 house arises. This should be near the berries, and should be large 

 enough to comfortably accommodate the packers and to shelter from 

 sun and rain such quantity of picked fruit as is likely to accumulate 

 at any one time. A flat-roofed shed, open to the north and boarded 

 down from the top to near the ground on the other three sides, an- 

 swers a very useful purpose. If a large area is planted, a more expen- 

 sive building, with storage room above for packages, may be built 

 with profit. 



Enough hand carriers should be provided, so that each picker 

 may deliver his load, receive credit for it by means of tickets or other 

 simple method of keeping account, and receive an empty carrier in 

 return without waiting for his own to be emptied. Some distinguish- 

 ing mark should be placed upon each loaded carrier, however, in or- 

 der that it may be traced to the picker at any time previous to the 

 packing of the fruit in the crate. This is easily done by assigning to 

 each picker a number and affixing to each carrier as it comes in an 

 inexpensive tag marked with the picker's number. Inexperienced 

 pickers need instruction when first placed at work, and watchful 

 supervision for a day or two. Old hands often have to unlearn care- 

 less or slovenly habits acquired elsewhere, and in this respect are less 

 satisfactory than new help. Neatness, thoroughness, and honesty 

 must be insisted on, and after a picker is known to be reliable on these 

 points his services are worth considerably more to the grower than 

 before. Pickers should be instructed to assort fruit as they pick, or 

 at least should be prohibited from placing decayed, unripe, or imper- 

 fect berries in the boxes with marketable fruit. All boxes should be 

 as full as they can be packed in the crates without bruising the fruit, 

 and the berries in the top layers should be placed by hand, so as to 

 present an attractive appearance. It goes without saying that the 



