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40 N. H. Agricultural Experiment Station [Bulletin 266 



Fruit. 



The total number of operations on fruit farms appears now from the 

 limited data on hand, to be fewer than on dairy or poultry farms, and 

 many of these require a large investment, the returns from which have 

 not been clearly determined by the project thus far. 



An Apple Grader and Sorter, such as was tested on the University 

 fruit farm (results given in Bulletin No. 228, March, 1927), was se- 

 riously considered for the one fruit farm, and from the standpoint of 

 operation and performance would have been entirely practical. The 

 main questions were those of investment and the most economical 

 method of marketing. These machines cost in the neighborhood of 

 $1,000. While this might be out of the question for small producers, 

 it appears possible that a community owned outfit would be desirable. 

 No question of the merits of grading and sorting fruit for quality mar- 

 keting is evident in any appreciable degree. Market conditions and 

 marketing methods present some questions, however. 



Motor Driven Cider Presses offer a method of disposal of culls and 

 poor grade fruit where a market for cider or vinegar exists. While 

 one of these presses has proved profitable on the college farm, their 

 value on fruit farms in general in this section remains to be verified. 



Spraying and Dusting Machinery, driven by electric motor instead 

 of gas engine, offers difficulties in supplying the current to mobile 

 equipment. In contrast to this is the method employed in the western 

 fruit sections of installing the spray machinery in a central, permanent 

 location and carrying the spray in underground pipe lines throughout 

 the orchard. No specialized work has been done by the project as yet 

 in this field. 



Insect Trapping by electric lights, while still in the experimental 

 stage at other Stations, offers possibilities in the control of pests and is 

 a subject of great interest to the owners of fruit farms. 



Refrigeration of Fruits. Experiments by the Horticultural Depart- 

 ment at the university on the pre-cooling of fruit immediately after 

 picking, by forced-draft refrigeration, show that apples so treated keep 

 in quality condition much longer than those untreated. This experi- 

 mental work has possibilities of future use on fruit farms. Refrig- 

 erated cold storage for fruit in place of the common storage heretofore 

 generally used, also has potential possibilities. Two such storages are 

 available for study by the project. The possibility of utilizing the 

 "quick-freezing" method for preparing fruits for market opens an- 

 other field of investigation not heretofore considered. The possibilities 

 of these three uses of refrigeration could be considered either as in- 

 dividual applications on large fruit farms, or as a community project 

 for a group of farms of smaller size. 



Farm Shop. A motorized farm shop is of equal importance on fruit 

 farms as on other types. 



While the load characteristics and electrical applications on this 

 fruit farm have proved desirable from all viewpoints, it is obvious that 

 results drawn from but one case are of doubtful value as pertaining 



