38 BULLETIN 917, U. S. DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE. 



Four men are used to fork the cucumbers into the thrasher, which is 

 pulled about the field by two horses and is operated by a small gaso- 

 line engine. One man, two horses, and a wagon are employed in 

 taking the seed to the pits. In 10 days to 2 weeks the seed is washed 

 free from the remaining pulp, spread on screens to dry, and then 

 sacked. The washing is done in a sluice box with water from an irri- 

 gation ditch. Three men do this work usually, washing 300 to 600 

 pounds of seed in a day. Some growers use chemical washers. (Figs. 

 37 and 38.) 



The harvesting of cantaloupe seed is done in the same manner as 

 cucumber seed. Cantaloupe harvesting for market is usually done 

 on contract by Mexicans, who are paid a given rate per crate. The 

 work of packing the melons in crates after being sorted and graded 

 is also usually done by contract. Melons must be picked regularly. 



Fig. 32.— Hauling alfalfa hay from the field with a wagon. This method is too slow where a large acreage 



is to be harvested. 



The entire field is gone over each day and the marketable ones 

 gathered. Where possible, all ripe melons are packed and shipped 

 the day they are picked. To get the melons from the fields, roads 

 are made at regular intervals a few rods apart, where the vines have 

 been laid to one side. 



The melons are hauled to sheds to be packed in crates, which are 

 bought and set up at a contract price. (Figs. 39 and 40.) 



The potato harvest begins the latter part of September and is 

 usually completed by the middle of October. In some seasons the 

 potatoes are harvested later, but there is danger of the frosting of 

 those near the surface of the ground. Potatoes are harvested by the 

 use of diggers that dig one row at a time and drop the tubers in the 

 furrow behind the implement. Usually the potatoes are clean and 

 free from dirt. A potato digger requires a crew of one man and four 



