STORAGE 337 



according to grade, and (if the conditions are favorable) store only the best 

 grades. But do not store even these grades if the price at the orchard is fair, 

 and you have an offer at a reasonable price. Let those who have the capital, 

 and who make a specialty of storage, take the risks, unless you are carefully 

 studying the fruit supplies and markets over the country. 



Good cold-storage stock should not be overgrown fruit. In a 

 number of varieties the larger apples are noticeably shorter lived 

 in storage than medium-sized fruits of the same variety. 



Differences have been noticed in boxes where the size varied 

 only by 40 or 50 apples to the box. In almost every variety the 

 larger apples will not keep so long as the smaller ones. They 

 also lose their flavor earlier. Just why this is true is a matter of 

 discussion. Doubtless the flesh is coarser and will break down 

 more quickly than in the smaller fruits. Further investigation 

 along this line should be undertaken. 



Importance of an unbroken skin on apples for cold storage. The 

 importance of storing only fruits which are entirely sound has been 

 demonstrated in numerous instances. Apples which had been 

 russeted with spray mixture, by frost, or by limb rubbing shriveled 

 much earlier than those which had a smooth, clear skin. Some 

 apples have a tendency to crack, while in others there is a natural 

 roughening of the skin. In seasons when the cracking is bad, it 

 is not well to include affected fruits in cold-storage stock, for they 

 will shrivel before the end of the season, since any break in the 

 skin allows the cell sap to evaporate more rapidly. This only 

 emphasizes the importance of having strictly first-grade stock for 

 cold-storage purposes. Where the fruit has been burned by spray 

 mixture or scarred in any other way, it should not be included in 

 storage stock that is to be held after February 1. 



Apple scald. Scald is not well understood, but is probably caused 

 by a ferment or enzyme which works more rapidly in a high tem- 

 perature. After the fruit is packed its susceptibility to scald in- 

 creases as the ripening progresses. Apple scald is not a contagious 

 disease, but, according to the Department of Agriculture, a phys- 

 iological disturbance not connected in any way with the action of 

 parasitic or saprophytic organisms such as molds or bacteria. It is 

 a brownish discoloration of the surface not extending into the flesh 

 of the apple, though scalded fruit will break down earlier than 



