FRUIT-PRESERVING. 



361 



and be placed in the trays with the apex down- 

 wards. They require to be exposed to the heat 

 gradually; in fact, some recommend the removal 

 of the trays occasionally to allow the fruit to 

 cool, and thus harden the skin until it can be 

 seen that shrivelling has commenced, when the 

 fruit is safe from bursting. The length of time 

 required to complete the drying of Plums varies 

 to some extent according to the variety em- 

 ployed, and it is not advisable to attempt dry- 

 ing several varieties at the same time, as some 

 will be finished hours before others. The larger 

 Plums with thick skins, like Monarch, need a 

 longer time than the smaller sorts with more 

 porous skins. Damsons are well suited for dry- 

 ing, especially the larger sorts, such as Bradley's 

 King, which yields a fair proportion of produce. 



Bottling is well adapted for the smaller Plums 

 and Damsons, also for Bullaces and the little- 

 known Mirabelles and St. Etienne. They re- 

 quire great care to prevent the too rapid rise in 

 the temperature, or the fruits burst. The same 

 rule applies to most of the fruits used for bottling ; 

 the water in which the bottles are placed should 

 be brought very gradually to the boiling-point, 

 and for Plums an hour and a half to two hours 

 may be allowed. When the bottling is effected 

 in a small apparatus heated by steam a longer 

 period is required. Red or Yellow Plums are 

 generally preferred for bottling. 



Another favourite mode of utilizing Plums is 

 in the form of jam, and some sorts yield a very 

 rich preserve. Equal quantities of fruit and 

 sugar should be taken, and a quick boiling of 

 three-quarters of an hour usually suffices to en- 

 sure a thoroughly-cooked product that will keep 

 well. The varieties with the best-coloured flesh 

 — other qualities being equal — aid in the manu- 

 facture of an article that will take a place in 

 the market, and the free-stone varieties are also 

 preferable. As regards the colour of the flesh, 

 examples of the richest may be found in Belle 

 de Septembre, crimson; Coe's Golden Drop, or 

 Autumn Compote, golden yellow; Green-gage 

 (delicate-green); and the Damsons for a very 

 dark and rich red. 



Most Plums are rich in the substance which 

 is converted into jelly on cooking, and Professor 

 Church has pointed out that although in the 

 Green-gage only \\ per cent of sug«,r has been 

 found, yet the same fruit contained "not less 

 than 10 \ per cent of pectous substance or vege- 

 table jelly". This is about double that contained 

 in Apples, so that the production of jellies from 

 the Plum is a comparatively simple matter. The 

 fruit should be boiled alone for half an hour, 



then strained as in the other cases, add 2 lbs. of 

 sugar to each quart of juice, and boil again for 

 twenty minutes. A firm, clear, and bright- 

 coloured jelly should be the result. 



In crystallizing and glazing, Green-gages and 

 small Yellow Plums are the chief favourites, and 

 the first-named make a particularly rich product 

 by this method. 



Apricots. — One of the most popular stone- 

 fruits for preserving in various ways is the 

 Apricot, which is always in demand. Enor- 

 mous quantities of this fruit are grown in France 

 for drying or crystallizing, and most of the 

 varieties are known here, though they are not 

 usually so valued for consumption in a fresh 

 state as the favourite dessert varieties of British 

 gardens. The Alberge is a variety or type (for 

 there are several of this name) that is largely 

 grown and employed for preserving; Alberge 

 de Montgame (known here as Montgametj is 

 another favourite in other districts; in the 

 Valley of the Rhone the Luizet has been found 

 a superior variety; Precoce de Saumur has been 

 extensively grown in the department of Maine- 

 et-Loire, where also the Peach Apricot (which 

 is nearly related to our popular Moorpark) takes 

 a prominent place. Mons. F. Jamin states that 

 "In La Limogue d'Auvergne large numbers of 

 Apricots are grown, and these represent for the 

 most part a variety with large white fruits bear- 

 ing the name of the province. The produce is 

 almost wholly utilized by the manufacturers of 

 Apricot preserves, into which an appreciable 

 quantity of Pumpkin pulp finds its way. It is 

 easy to imagine the enormous profits realized 

 by the manufacturers who were the first to direct 

 their attention to this particular business." 



It is seldom that large producers of preserved 

 Apricots can secure sufficient home-grown fruits 

 for this purpose, and they import quantities from 

 France every year. This is mostly used in the 

 production of jam, which has a wide sale at 

 good prices. The fruit is prepared by being 

 cut in half and the stones removed, sugar is 

 added in the proportion of 7 J lbs. to each 10 lbs. 

 of fruit, the stones are broken and a small num- 

 ber of kernels are added, the whole being boiled 

 for about half an hour. Drying and crystal- 

 lizing Apricots, though constituting such im- 

 portant industries in France, are rarely resorted 

 to here except in a small way for home use. 

 They are treated in a similar way to Plums, 

 except that the stone is always removed. 



Cherries. — These can be either dried, bottled, 

 made into jam, or crystallized, and they are 

 largely used in all these methods. The Morello 



