Strawberries 



layers of crushed ice in each package of radishes, espe- 

 cially when shipping over long distances. This will assist 

 in preventing the decay of the tops and roots, and keep 

 the plants crisp and fresh. 



Small Fruits 



The packages used for berries of all kinds are pint or 

 quart "cups" or boxes made of cardboard or thin veneer 

 and fastened together with wire staples or tacks. The 

 shape of the boxes varies somewhat with the market to 

 which the fruit goes, although in a general way square 

 boxes, which are a little larger at the top than bottom are 

 preferred on the Eastern markets, while in the Middle 

 Western states the "Hallock' 1 or "Leslie" boxes are used. 

 Whatever shape box is used, they are packed in crates 

 holding from 16 to 24 or 32, 48 or 60 boxes. 



As a rule the softer the berry the smaller the box should 

 be, or at least the more shallow it should be in order to 

 prevent the berries from being crushed t>y their own 

 weight. For this reason the package most popular for the 

 fruits of the brambles, such as red raspberries, black rasp- 

 berries, blackberries and dewberries, are cups which are 

 about five inches square and two inches deep. These cup's 

 hold approximately a pint, and in them the berries are not 

 piled so deep that the bottom ones are crushed by the 

 weight of those above. Packages of this size are so satis- 

 factory for small fruits that blackberries have been har- 

 vested in the Puget Sound country of Washington and 

 shipped to Chicago, where they arrived practically in as 

 good condition as the day they were picked from the 

 bushes. 



Strawberries 



The system of packing strawberries is undergoing a 

 gradual transformation, taking the country as a whole. 

 This is on account of the great extension of the commer- 

 cial strawberry growing country, and the increasing de- 

 mands for fancy fruits in neat and attractive packages. 



