4 BULLETIN 859, U. S. DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE. 



rows are 6 feet apart. The procedure is the same. The usual 

 practice is to fertilize at the rate of 1 to 1 J tons per acre, the last 

 application being made several weeks before picking. The interval 

 between applications varies with weather conditions and the growth 

 of the plants. The custom is to locate the position of the rootlets 

 along the side of the furrow made at the preceding application and 

 to keep a quantity of fertilizer just ahead of these rootlets, so that a 

 constant supply is available for the plant. 



The time of picking the tomatoes of course depends upon the age 

 and condition of the fruit. Many growers believe that it is an easy 

 matter to determine the maturity by the character of the darkened 

 area around the stem end. Toward the last stages of maturation 

 the chlorophyll gradually disappears, especially around the stem end, 



Fig. 1.— A tomato field in Florida. 



where a whitened area is left. Fields are gone over once a week by the 

 pickers, who collect the fruit in baskets or tin buckets. (Fig. 1.) 

 In general the pickers (Nassau negroes) do not pay much attention 

 to the color of the tomatoes, but gather those that appear large 

 enough to ship. The tomatoes are dumped into field boxes at the 

 ends of the rows and carried by wagon to the ripening house or pack- 

 ing house. The fruit is generally handled carefully, but often it is 

 dropped from the gathering bucket to the field crate without the 

 picker even bending over. 



PACKING AND SHIPPING OPERATIONS. 



Until recently the fruit was sorted, packed, and shipped imme- 

 diately upon its arrival at the packing house, but the loss through 

 disease and bruising was so great that it became necessary to adopt 



