350 The Canadian Horticulturist. 



time. Thus the fruit, however dry its surface may be when placed in storage, is 

 hkely to become m )istened all over within an hour afterward. 



On the other hand, suppose the orchardist stores his apples in an outbuilding 

 until they become so cold that he fears they may freeze before removing them to 

 his cellar, as he is often advised to do. Obviously, the moment the apples come 

 in contact with the warmer and usually moister air of the cellar, a layer of moist- 

 ure is condensed upon them, and his fruit, though dry enough in the outbuilding, 

 js damp in the cellar. 



MELLOW AND MOIST. 



This is one reason why fruit taken out of cold storage often decays so 

 promptly. The maturing process has been gomg on slowly and almost impercept- 

 ibly, and the fruit, though entirely sound, is at that condition that invites decay. On 

 being brought from an atmosphere little above the freezing point into the temper- 

 ature of the market, it is soon moistened all over by condensed water, which sup- 

 plies the only lacking condition of putrefaction, and decay results almost as if by 

 magic. 



A state of dampness is more favorable to decay than one of positive wetness. 

 The housekeeper knows that her clothes are more likely to mildew when they are 

 moist than when they are under water, and every farmer knows that wood kept 

 constantly water-soaked will last much longer than that which is kept in a damp 

 state. So fruit that is so placed that it is kept constantly wet will often keep bet- 

 ter than that which is stored in a comparatively dry atmosphere. The practical 

 question is raised, how shall we handle our fruit so as to prevent it from becom- 

 ing moistened by condensed water ? It is not always easy to do this, where we 

 use a cool cellar or storage room, but by taking proper precautions it is generally 

 possible, (i) Gather and pack the fruit, so far as possible, at a time when the 

 atmosphere is dry and cool. (2) Have the fruit as nearly as possible of the 

 temperature of the cellar or storage room at the time it is deposited in it. (3) 

 Keep the cellar or storage room as nearly as possible at a uniform temperature, 

 and always as dry as possible. 



The first precaution cannot always be observed. As a hint in observing the 

 second, it is well to store the fruit temporarily in a cool, airy place, as the north 

 side of an outbuilding, until a cool night comes, and then place it in the store 

 room in the morning before the sun has time to warm up the packages. For the 

 third precaution, avoid ventilating the cellar or store room at a time when the 

 outer atmosphere is moist, or when its temperature is much different from that 

 within. — E. S. Goff, University of Wisconsin. 



