88 MASS. EXPERIMENT STATION BULLETIN 169. 



In order to avoid excessive loss, it frequently becomes necessary to market 

 the onions in the upper bins very early in the season. A few storages 

 are equipped with bins holding from 50 to 80 bushels, and having a depth 

 of about 18 inches. 



3. Bags or Sacks. — Formerly a great many onions were stored in bags. 

 A few storage men in the valley still use them, placing the bags two or 

 three deep on shelves, thereby sa^'ing much time and labor of extra 

 handling. In years when onions are not of the best quality and the 

 outside skin comes off easily bags are very satisfactory. As a rule, how- 

 ever, dealers agree that the shrinkage is greater, and that onions so stored 

 discolor the bag and make it unsuitable for shipping. Some onions, 

 especially those intended for early shipment, are stored in this way in 

 practically every storage. 



Dates and Periods of Storage. 



The major portion of the storage onions are placed in storage during the 

 month of October. By the end of November shipments from field and 

 from temporary storehouses have ceased, transactions thereafter being 

 entirely with storage onions. For two months loss by shi-inkage is com- 

 paratively small and accordingly shipments are light. In December 

 storage onions begin to move and by the end of March practically all are 

 marketed. These periods vary somewhat from year to year with the 

 keeping quality of the crop and the market price but, as a general rule, 

 as soon as there is danger of loss from shrinkage or other cause the storage 

 men begin to unload. It will be noted from the accompanjdng diagram 

 that a little over two-thirds (68.5 per cent.) of the 1914 crop was marketed 

 directly from the field or temporary storage from July to December. 

 One-third (31.5 per cent.) of the crop was put into permanent storage. 

 The shipments for December constituted only 3 per cent, of the crop, 

 but during January, February and March 25 per cent, of the total crop 

 was marketed. On March 31 only 3.5 per cent, remained in local storages. 

 Some years when the demand is strong and the quality of the onions good 

 a considerable quantity is removed to cold storage about March 1. 



March is the period of greatest activity. In the 1913-14 season, con- 

 sidering merely that portion of the crop stored, 26.6 per cent, of the onions 

 were moved out during March; 21.2 per cent, in February; 21.9 per cent, 

 in January. In other words, practically 70 per cent, of the storage onions 

 were shipped to market during those tlii-ee months. In the season of 

 1914-15 nearly SO per cent, of the crop stored was marketed during the 

 same period. March was again the month of heaviest shipment with 35.4 

 per cent.; February with 25.4 per cent.; and January with 18.9 per cent, of 

 the stored onions. 



Of the 1915 crop 59.7 per cent, was shipped from July to December. 

 The shipments out of storage by months follows : — 



