60 SUCCESSFUL FRUIT CULTURE 



ladder come together at the top and the third leg is 

 bolted in between them, thus forming a tripod, and if 

 the two main legs are three or more feet apart, it will 

 stand very firmly. This ladder is more cheaply made 

 than the common form of stepladders, occupies less space, 

 and the top being pointed, it can be placed in among 

 the branches much better than the common ladders. 

 The main legs of the six-foot ladder should be two and 

 one-half feet apart, the eight-foot ladder three feet and 

 the ten-foot three and one-half feet apart. 



After picking the fruit many growers put it in 

 piles under the trees and sort and pack from the ground. 

 But this is a very slow and hard way of doing the work, 

 for no one can work to advantage in such a position. 

 If the fruit is to be packed in the orchard, a much 

 better way is to put it into a low wagon body that 

 stands just high enough for comfortable working and 

 sort and pack as the fruit is picked, moving the wagon 

 along as the trees are finished. A sorting box or tray is 

 also sometimes used, it being moved along from time to 

 time as is needed. This box should be made with three 

 legs, so as to stand firmly on uneven land and slope 

 to the sorting end from three to four inches, so that 

 the fruit will work toward the sorter. 



Some of the largest growers in the country put into 

 barrels as they are picked and take them directly to a 

 cool, open shed or barn, or to a cold storage room. Here 

 they may be kept until all the fruit is safely housed 

 before it is sorted and then be packed. If help is abun- 

 dant, unless the fruit is to be kept for a late market, 

 it is just as w^ell to pick and pack in the field as it 

 comes from the trees, but if help is not abundant, or 

 if the crop is very large, it is best to get the fruit into 

 a cool place as soon as possible. 



One of the best methods is that practiced by the 

 veteran fruit grower of Massachusetts, Dr. Jabez Fisher 



