GATHERING, PACKING, AND DISTRIBUTING. 77 



is good and even in quality throughout, the buyers soon 

 find it out, and purchase accordingly. One great advan- 

 tage in thus packing the fruit is, that the small purchasers 

 get the fruit without its being re-packed, and no handling 

 is needful from the time it leaves the garden to its arrival 

 at the consumer's. 



After selecting the largest and best in this way, the 

 smaller fruit of raspberries, strawberries, and currants 

 will be almost as good for preserving purposes. These 

 are picked into peck baskets, and raspberries into small 

 tubs. Some large growers, who have a quantity to dis- 

 pose of, will contract with a jam factory months before- 

 hand, and in some cases for a succession of years even, at 

 fixed prices, the fruit, of course, being gathered and sent 

 in as it becomes ready. 



Plums, being also soft fruits, are treated in the same 

 way; but I would strongly urge growers to take much 

 more pains with the choice dessert plums, in the way of 

 packing them in small light baskets or boxes, putting 

 them up in an attractive and tasty manner, so that they 

 may be handed to the consumer without being rubbed 

 and mauled about by the various hands they may pas; 

 through. 



Pears. Here again the choice dessert varieties are 

 worthy of much more care in packing than they receive 

 at present. For this small shallow boxes may be used, 

 the fruit being packed closely in single layers, placing 

 a small quantity of soft material at the bottom of the 

 boxes, with a little also between each fruit, wedging each 

 layer tightly together ; then fill up with some soft mate- 

 rial on the top, so that the lid presses firmly on the fruit. 

 This is important, in order to prevent the fruits from 

 moving and rubbing each other. Boxes of proper dimen- 



