122 MASS. EXPERIMENT STATION BULLETIN 192. 



7. The Relative Keeping of Wet and Dry Cranberries. 

 Table 10 describes two experiments in this connection with fruit from 

 the station bog. In each test the fruit was stored in bushel picking crates 

 the day it was picked, four crates of each lot of the Early Black and six 

 of each lot of the Howes berries being used. The results confirm those 

 of tests heretofore reported. ^ 



Table 10. — Relative Keeping of Wet and Dry Cranberries. 



Time of Day 



the Fruit was 



picked and 



stored. 



Period of Storage. 



Percent- 

 age of 



Berries 



showing 

 Decay 



at End 

 of 



Storage. 



Early Black, 

 Howes. 



7 to 8 A.M. 

 11 A.M. to 12 M. 



7 to 8 A.M. 



4 to 4.15 P.M. 



Sept. 19 to Nov. 13 

 Sept. 26 to Nov. 13 



47.88 

 33.60 



39.86 

 13.57 



As it was thought that berries picked wet might keep less weU than 

 those picked dry because of being bruised more in the process of picking, 

 an experiment in which one of the lots was wetted in the crates after 

 picking was tried. The berries were of the Early Black variety, and 

 were picked on September 14 and stored in bushel picking crates. There 

 were three crates in each lot. On November 14 the berries were examined 

 for rot, and 66.34 per cent were found showmg decay in the wetted lot 

 against 45.85 per cent in the dry one. The result clearly shows the harmful 

 effect o; wetness among stored cranberries. 



8. The Effect of an Admixture of Cranberry Leaves on the Keeping of the 

 Berries. 

 The fruit of two varieties. Early Black and Howes, was tried in this 

 connection. The berries were picked and stored September 22, in bushel 

 picking crates, twelve crates of each variety being used, six with leaves 

 and six without. The berries and leaves were put into the crates in 

 alternate layers, and each layer of leaves was mixed with the berries 

 beneath it by careful shaking, this probably doing little or no harm to 

 the fruit. Three quarts of leaves were used in each crate to which they 

 were added. The berries were examined for rot on December 26 and 27. 

 The examination showed the following percentages of decay: — 



Early Black: with leaves, 62.74; without leaves, 47.77. 

 Howes: with leaves, 42.59; without leaves, 27.36. 



1 Bui. No. 180, Mass. Agr. Expt. Sta., 1917, pp. 201-204. 



