TOMATO 297 
mens. Ordinarily there is no advantage in having more 
than two-grades. 
Fig. 96.—Tomatoes are sometimes wrapped and packed in the manner shown in 
this illustration. 
A great many different kinds of packages (Figs. 95, 96, 
97 and 98) are used for the handling of forced tomatoes. 
They vary in capacity from 4 to 25 pounds. Baskets 
similar in shape to those in which grapes are packed so 
extensively are most largely employed. The quantity 
commonly packed in a basket is 10 pounds, though 15 and 
20-pound sizes are not unusual, especially for the spring 
crop, when prices are relatively low. Some growers usc 
paper cartons of various descriptions. New England 
growers often pack eight paper boxes, each holding six 
pounds of fruit, in their standard bushel box, which may 
then be crated for shipment. The weighing of the toma- 
toes should be accurate, so that there can be no complaint 
on that account. 
Winter tomatoes are always wrapped in paper unless 
they are sold on a local market. To insure safe trans- 
portation a common practice is to place a layer of ex- 
celsior in the bottom of the basket and also between 
layers of the fruit to prevent bruising. It is an advantage 
