CIRCULAR No. 278 SEPTEMBER 1933 \ 



UNITED STATES DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE 

 WASHINGTON, D. C. 



THE COMMERCIAL STORAGE OF FRUITS, VEGE- 

 TABLES, AND FLORISTS' STOCKS 



By Dean H. Rose, senior physiologist, H. C. Weight, physiologist, and T. M. 

 Whiteman, junior horticulturist, Division of Fruit and Vegetable Crops and 

 Diseases, Bureau of Plant Industry 



CONTENTS 



Page 



Introduction 1 



Factors involved in cold storage 2 



Effect of cold storage on subsequent be- 

 havior of fruits and vegetables 8 



Fruits and nuts 10 



Apples 11 



Apricots 12 



Bananas 12 



Blackberries 12 



Cherries 13 



Cranberries 13 



Dewberries 13 



Grapefruit 13 



Grapes 14 



Lemons 15 



Logan blackberries 15 



Oranges 15 



Peaches 16 



Pears 16 



Plums (including prunes) 18 



Quinces 18 



Raspberries 18 



Strawberries 18 



Dried fruits 18 



Frozen fruits 19 



Nuts 19 



Vegetables 20 



Asparagus. 20 



Beans 21 



Beets 21 



Broccoli (Italian or sprouting) 22 



Cabbage 22 



Carrots 23 



Cauliflower- 23 



Page 



Vegetables— Continued 



Celery 23 



Corn (green). 24 



Cucumbers 24 



Eggplants 25 



Endive or escarole 25 



Garlic (dry) 25 



Horseradish 25 



Jerusalem artichoke 25 



Leeks (green.) 26 



Lettuce 26 



Melons 26 



Onions and onion sets 27 



Parsnips 28 



Peas (green) 28 



Peppers 28 



Potatoes 29 



Pumpkins 30 



Radishes (winter) 30 



Rhubarb 30 



Rutabagas 30 



Salsify 30 



Spinach 31 



Squashes 31 



Sweetpotatoes 31 



Tomatoes 31 



Turnips 32 



Cut flowers, florists' greens, rhizomes, tubers, 



corms, and bulbs 32 



Cut flowers 33 



Florists' greens .- 36 



Rhizomes, tubers, and corms 36 



Bulbs 37 



Literature cited 37 



INTRODUCTION 



The purpose of this circular is to present a series of brief sum- 

 maries of the essential average storage requirements of most of 

 the more important varieties of fresh fruits, vegetables, cut flowers, 

 and certain other perishable commodities which enter the market 

 on a commercial scale. Many details are of necessity omitted, as 

 the work is intended primarily for general practical reference. The 

 conditions given should not be considered as absolute or final, but 

 rather as the safe limitations under which the various products can 

 ordinarily be stored. Detailed information on the handling and 

 storage of some of the commodities discussed is available elsewhere 



176687°— 33 1 1 



