422 Crystallized Frutts. 
to make a general prescription, because the choice differs some- 
what with different localities. It is a good idea for the new 
planter to consult with owners of adjacent bearing orchards and 
to secure from the nearest canneries lists which are acceptable 
to them. 
CRYSTALLIZED FRUITS. 
Progress is being continually made in the production of 
candied, crystallized, or glace fruits, but the product is not a 
large one. Special establishments are now doing this work in 
Ios Angeles, San Jose, and San Francisco. They have proc- 
esses which are the result of considerable experimentation, and 
they do not make them public. To others the way lies open to 
similar experimentation. The general theory and an outline of 
practise as given by J. J. Pratt, of the Yuba City Cannery, is as 
follows :— 
The theory is to extract the juice from the fruit, and replace it with 
sugar syrup, which, upon hardening, preserves the fruit from decay, and 
at the same time retains the natural shape of the fruit. All kinds of 
fruit are capable of being preserved under this process. Though the 
method is very simple, there is a certain skill required that is acquired 
enly by practise. The several successive steps in the process are about 
as follows:— 
First. the same care in selecting and grading the fruit should be 
taken as for canning; that is, the fruit should be all of one size, and as 
near the same ripeness as possible. The exact degree of ripeness is ot 
great importance, which is at that stage when fruit is best for canning. 
Peaches, pears, etc., are pared and cut in halves, as for canning; plums, 
cherries, etc., are pitted. The fruit, having thus been carefully prepared, 
is put in a basket, or a bucket with a perforated bottom, and immersed 
in boiling water. The object of this is to dilute and extract the juice 
of the fruit. The length of time the fruit is immersed is the most 
important part of the process. If left too long, it is overcooked and 
becomes soit; if not immersed long enough, the juice is not sufficiently 
extracted, which prevents a perfect absorption of the sugar. 
After the fruit has been thus scalded and allowed to cool, it can 
again be assorted as to softness. The next step is the syrup, which is 
made of white sugar and water. The softer the fruit, the heavier the 
syrup required. Ordinarily about seventy degrees, Balling’s saccha- 
rometer, is about the proper weight for the syrup. 
The fruit is then placed in earthen pans, and covered with the syrup, 
where it is left to remain about a week. The sugar enters the fruit and 
displaces what juice remained after the scalding process. 
The fruit now requires careful watching, as fermentation will soon 
take place, and when this has reached a certain stage, the fruit and 
syrup are heated to a boiling degree, which checks the fermentation. 
This heating process should be repeated as often as necessary for about 
six weeks. : : 
The fruit is then taken out of the syrup, and washed in clean water, 
and it is then ready to be either glaced or crystallized, as the operator 
may wish. If glaced, the fruit is dipped in thick sugar syrup and left to 
harden quickly in the open air. If it is to be crystallized, dip in the 
same kind of syrup, but allow to cool and harden slowly, thus caus- 
