9O Fruitgrowing under Irrigation 



heat has a tendency to shrivel the fruit and to 

 somewhat darken its colour. 



THE PRUNE. 



When thoroughly ripe the prune is either picked 

 or shaken (as in California) from the tree. The 

 chief work in preparing the prune for market lies in 

 dipping and cracking the skin of the fruit and then 

 drying it. 



The fruit is placed in perforated dipping tins and 

 immersed in boiling lye of a strength of from one 

 pound of caustic soda to 10 to 20 gallons of 'water, 

 and kept immersed from 10 to 20 seconds, the 

 length of immersion varying according to the 

 strength of the dip the stronger the dip the shorter 

 the time of immersion, and vice versa, the object of 

 such immersion being to crack the skin of the fruit. 



After being immersed, the fruit is tipped out on 

 to a draining board or tray for the water to drain 

 off, after which it is usually passed on to a board 

 having sharp-pointed needles about a quarter of an 

 inch long, which further perforate the skin, so that 

 the moisture may more readily escape whilst the 

 fruit is drying. The fruit is sun-dried upon trays, 

 and when finished is placed in sweat boxes for a few 

 weeks to sweat and even up, after which it is sent 

 to the packing shed. 



THE PEAR. 



The variety of pear that at present is by far the 

 most popular drying kind is the Bartlett or 

 Williams'. 



The fruit is picked off the trees when still hard, 

 usually some time in February, and placed in sweat 

 boxes in the storage shed. When the fruit is ripen- 

 ing the sweat boxes are frequently examined, and 

 the ripe fruit taken out and placed in separate 



