COST OF PEODUCING APPLES IN" WENATCHEB VALLEY, WASH. 27 



BOX MAKING. 



The boxes are usually made by the orchardist and members of his 

 family if the number necessary for the crop is not too large. Where 

 boxes are made by contract there is a charge of $0.0075 to SO.Ol per 

 box. 



PICKING. 



Picking is usually begun on the Jonathans about the 1st of Septem- 

 ber and ends with the Winesaps along in November. Picking is 

 done by hand into buckets of various kinds. The galvanized one- 

 half bushel bucket is most common, although some use a galvanized- 

 iron bucket with a canvas bottom which may be opened to allow the 





Fig. 5.— Picking Grimes Golden apples. Showing one type of ladder used for picking in the valley. 



fruit to pass into a picking box without injury. The pickers ordi- 

 narily work from orchard ladders and stepladders varying in length 

 from 8 to 10 feet, (See fig. 5.) On account of the size of the trees, 

 it is seldom necessaiy to use a ladder over 14 feet in length. Some 

 varieties are picked two or three times. Where ripening is irregular 

 among the red varieties, orchardists pick the apple when it approaches 

 a correct stage of ripeness and lias obtained the proper color. It is 

 not customary to pick a])pl*'S })y.c()ntractperbox. All picking is done 

 })y day labor at from S2.25 to $2.50 per 10-hour day. The apples 

 wlicn picked ar(^ plnced in packing boxes which previously have been 

 sralterf'd at conveni(!nt p]af;es throughout the orchard. Tlic average 

 picker will pick from 50 to 80 loose boxes per day. The average for 

 all records was 71.0 loostr })oxeH, or 40.73 packed boxes, pci" H)-]iour 

 day, ut a cost of S0.0503 per packed })o\. 



