70 EIGHTH REPORT OF THE 



as profitable wages can be earned at a less rate by men who are not afraid to 

 work. The total cost for picking the two hundred and one half bushels was one 

 hundred and fifty-seven dollars and twenty-five cents, an average of seventy-eight 

 cents per bushel. 



Extracting tl)e 3eeds. 



Drying the cones and extracting the seeds is by far the most important and 

 critical part of the entire work. It is the longest process, one requiring the 

 most careful attention and the exercise of good judgment. When cones dry 

 naturally the scales near the base do not open and liberate the seeds, but in 

 a room properly warmed these scales open freely so that the seeds will drop out. 

 The length of time necessary for Spruce cones to dry, so that they will open 

 satisfactorily, depends: 



(i) On the number of square feet of drying space per bushel. 



(2) Whether the cones dry naturally, or whether artificial heat is used. 



(3) The time of year when the cones are picked. 



(4) The humidity of the air during the drying process. 



(5) The care exercised in stirring, sorting and cleaning while in the racks. 

 Naturally the thinner the cones are spread on the floor of the bin the faster 



they will dry. A liberal allowance of space would be twelve square feet per 

 bushel. In a drying-room, which is well heated and thoroughly ventilated, they 

 will open much quicker than if the process is conducted under other conditions. 

 Ventilation is necessary to carry off the moisture and thus prevent mildew, for 

 if no heat is used the cones will lie in the racks a month or more without 

 opening. 



Spruce cones picked when green are especially slow in opening. Those gathered 

 before September twentieth were, in this case, the last to open, while those 

 picked last opened first. Those received on September thirteenth lay in the racks 

 three weeks without showing any signs of drying, but the stock received last 

 began to open in less than a week. 



When a few pounds of seed only are needed, September twenty-fifth, or 

 thereabouts, would be the best time for gathering Spruce cones in the Adirondacks. 

 After October first the shock to the tree in falling is sufficient to shake a large 

 part of the cones from the branches. It does not pay to pick them off the 

 ground, for they are too much scattered and covered with the rubbish that clings 

 to their pitchy surface. 



When the cones are first brought in from the woods they are so thickly 

 smeared with sticky, resinous matter that, when spread out on the racks, they 



