150 FRt'IT HARVESTING, STORING, MARKETING 



It is 11X12 feet in size on the floor. It is built of 

 brick with double walls, four inches apart, and filled 

 with sawdust between. The ground floor is 15 inches 

 below the surface of the ground, but the soil is banked 

 up against the outside walls to some hight for pro- 

 tection. The room is 8 feet high inside. The ceiling 

 is covered above with 15 inches of sawdust. The 

 floor is grouted and cemented and the walls are plas- 

 tered. This house has proven unusually successful 

 for holding apples; but much of the good result is 

 doubtless due to the manner of growing and handling 

 the fruit. Mr. Burton writes me on this matter as 

 follows: " Our success in keeping apples is due more 

 to the handling than to the house ; in fact, our apples 

 are kept in the barn and outhouses till cold weather 

 drives them into the cellar. Did we ])arrel them as 

 you state in your bulletin, only partially assorted, we 

 would expect to lose most of them, as do our neigh- 

 bors. Every apple showing any sign of decay is 

 rejected. We leave them on the tree as lon'g as pos- 

 sible, not to have too nuich loss by falling. They can 

 pass the hot spells much more successsully on the trees 

 than in the barrels. It is the hot weather after gath- 

 ering, hastening the ripening, that causes most of the 

 loss Ave sustain. We hardly know .such a thing as 

 winter rot. A cellar under a house is too warm to 

 keep apples well in our climate. Our key to .success 

 is: Assort .severely, and keep as cool as possible not to 

 freeze. ' ' 



IVesf Vi7'gi7iia experience. — Certain counties of 

 We.st Virginia produce consideral)le quantities of 



