252 [Assembly 



ly ripe, to be gathered, (the cherry when perfectly ripe, the oth- 

 er fruits three or four days before maturity.) The seed fruits of 

 Autumn should be gathered from eight to twelve days before 

 perfect ripeness, for they contain the necessary elements to per- 

 fect their ripening, which is nothing more than an independent 

 chemical action. Ey separating the fruit from the branch, and 

 stopping its supply of sap from it, it elaborates more perfectly 

 the juices contained in its tissues, the sugar principle is no longer 

 subject to added water of the sap, and now becomes of richer taste. 

 The suitable time to gather these fruits is when from green they 

 commence on the sunny side to turn yellow. 



Gooseberries and raspberries must be picked when perfectly 

 ripe. Seed fruits which ripen late, in September or October, 

 should be gathered when fully ripe, for after that they lose qual- 

 ity and are more difficult to preserve. The fruit on the lower half 

 of the tree should be gathered first, for that on the upper half in 

 eight or ten days after will be ripe. Fruit on old trees should 

 be gathered sooner than that on young and vigorous trees, which 

 are later than old ones in dropping their leaves. The time to 

 pick is easily known by the fruit coming off easily. Grapes for 

 preservation should not be picked until perfectly ripe. Fruit 

 for keeping ought to be picked in a dry, clear day, between noon 

 and 4 o'clock, P.M. The best known method of gathering fruit 

 is the hand. There should be no pressure on it for the least 

 bruise leads to rot. They should be laid on cloth in the basket, 

 and only three deep, for more than that is apt to hurt the lower 

 tier ; each layer must be separated by leaves — wrap every peach 

 with a grape-vine leaf. The basket must be carried carefully 

 without any jarring or shaking. The fruit must be spread on tables, 

 covered with leaves or moss, very dry, in dry, airy rooms. The 

 peaches must be cleansed of their down. 



The Preservation. — The room to contain the fruit must be con- 

 tained in an outer wall — space between walls about twenty inches. 

 The walls should be a foot thick, of pise or clay, which is better 

 for this purpose than any masonry whatever. Straw or marl may 

 be mixed with the clay. Such walls cost but little, and are very 

 bad conductors of heat. Double doors and windows are of course 



