Picking the Fruit 257 



facilitate emptying without bruising the fruit; the other 

 a canvas bag open at the bottom, with a snap to close this 

 opening and a heavy wire ring to keep the top distended. 

 The two types are shown in Figures 65 and 66. 



Several types of picking ladders are now in use. One of 

 the most convenient forms is a common step-ladder with a 

 broad base, as that shown in Figure 67. The broad base 

 allows the picker to lean to one side without danger of tip- 

 ping the ladder. It is better to have two lengths in ladder 

 instead of making all the pickers carry long ones. An- 

 other ladder, rather handy for work on the inside of the 

 tree, is that shown in Figure 68. With the top placed 

 securely in a fork it is a very steady ladder to work on. 

 Different types of wheel ladders have been introduced. 

 Figure 69 is a common home-made form. This ladder is 

 rather heavy and cumbersome to handle, and except for 

 high cherry or pear trees it is not to be commended. For- 

 tunately, our fruit-trees do not grow large, and we are 

 learning to train them in convenient forms. 



Picking Apples 



Many rules have been laid down to guide the fruit- 

 grower in picking apples. All are more or less correct, and 

 probably all fail to be universally applicable. Taken as a 

 whole, however, it should be possible to give a set of rules 

 that is fairly reliable. 



One of the most common rules is to pick when the seeds 

 begin to turn brown about the edges. In many cases this 

 is a good rule to follow, but in others it is far from reliable. 

 The writers have observed cases in which the seeds were 

 practically brown thirty days before the fruit was really 



