SEVENTEENTH ANNUAL MEETING. 153 



Successful Western Methods of Grading and Pack- 

 ing Fancy Apples. 



By Prof. Lowell B. Judson, Assistant Professor of Horti- 

 culture, Cornell University, Ithaca, N. Y. 



Packing Apples in Boxes. 



The box is undoubtedly the comino- packai^e for fancy 

 apples. Its general adoption in the far West may have been 

 due at first to chance. seein<j that material for barrels was 

 not to be obtained there without great expense ; but the many 

 advantages of the box package are now so apparent that no 

 one on the Pacific Coast would think of using barrels for 

 fruit, even though they might be had quite as readily as 

 boxes. The bushel box is convenient in size for the average 

 family, and makes it possible for the grower to place his 

 fruit in the hands of the consumer in the original package, 

 thus deriving the benefit of advertising. It is practically 

 impossible for a grower to build up a reputation among con- 

 sumers if he uses only the barrel package, for that is too large 

 for all but a few of the consuming public. If the barrel is 

 used, it is opened by the retail grocer, and the consumer sel- 

 dom knows from what grower the fruit comes. The box 

 package also gives the consumer a much better opportunity 

 to examine the fruit before purchasing, in case he does buy 

 in original packages, since by removing the cover or side, one- 

 fourth, or at least one-fifth, of the apples are at once exposed 

 to view. The smaller package also admits of much better 

 aeration than the barrel, and permits the contents to be cooled 

 'more rapidly when placed in storage. Finally, the box is a 

 much neater and more attractive package than the barrel, and 

 permits a peep at the contents even before it is opened. 



Various sizes of boxes are in use for packing apples, but 

 most of the growers on the Pacific Coast have now settled 

 upon two sizes, the so-called "standard," measuring inside 

 10 j^ X 11^ X 18 inches, and the "special," which is a trifle 

 longer and narrower, measuring inside 10x11x20 inches. 

 The standard box thus contains a little less than 2,200 cubic 



