fine in texture, and freedom from blemishes are the requisites for the 

 first grade. A "Choice" orange is supposed to. have good color and 

 fairly good texture. It may have a few slight blemishes; but it is 

 supposed to be free from frost damage and reasonably heavy and 

 juicy. A "Standard" orange may be quite badly scarred or discolored, 

 coarse in, texture and irregular in form, but should be merchantable 

 shipping stock. There is a fourth grade, "Culls," sold to peddlers, 

 or shipped to nearby markets. 



Standard Packs and A standard box of California oranges is 12 by 



Boxes for 12 by 26 inches outside measurement, divided 



Oranges. , in the middle by a partition, with an inside 



fruit space of llj^ by II y 2 by 24 inches. A 



box of oranges packed for the market is estimated to average 72 

 pounds. The number of oranges in a box may vary from 80 to 324, 

 and for the different sizes of oranges there are standard methods of 

 arranging the layers. Packs of 80, 96, and 112 oranges go in four 

 layers; 126, 150, 176, 200 in five layers; 250 and 324 in six layers. 



The picking box, which is without partition, holds but fifty pounds, 

 and must not be confused with the packing box. 



Prime Importance The researches of Mr. Powell and his assistants 



of Careful have demonstrated the importance of careful 



Handling. handling of the crop in picking and packing, as 



he found most of the decay in transit came from 



mechanical injuries. Perhaps the clipper has cut the skin, one orange 

 has punctured another, the fruit has been dropped hard and bruised, 

 or punctured by the finger-nail of the picker or by twigs and gravel 

 in the bottom of the picking boxes; or the trouble may have been 

 caused in the packing house by a broken wire in a wash tank, a pro- 

 truding screw among the bristles of a brushing machine, a nail or bolt 

 extending into a chute or runway, or some similar defect as easily 

 remedied. 



Associations Market The grower generally delivers his crop at the 



Major Portion of nearest packing house, and from that time 



Crop. on it is handled by the local association, 



which is generally run on the co-operative 



plan. These co-operative associations handle from 70 to 75% of the 

 citrus fruit crop. There are also firms and individuals who pack, 

 distribute and sell fruit on commission for the growers. Much of 

 this fruit is sold f. o. b. cars in California, while some is consigned to 

 distant merchants. Some firms also buy the fruit on the trees from 

 the grower', either by the pound or by paying a lump sum for the 

 entire crop. 



. The California Fruit Growers' Exchange is the largest of the 

 Co-operative organizations, marketing something more than 56% of 

 the entire citrus crop. It represents about 4,000 growers who are 

 organized into more than 80 local incorporated associations. 



For details of the working of exchanges, the handling of fruit in 

 the packing houses, methods of refrigeration, etc., the reader is re- 

 ferred to Mr. Powell's book, the number of which is given above. ,' ; ... 



14 



