20 



CIRCULAR 2 7 8, U. S. DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE 



Table 4. — Length of time at various temperatures for safe storage of certain varieties 

 of pears at shipping point and after shipment to market (33) 



Storage treatment and variety 



Length of 

 storage 

 period 



End of storage period 



Stored immediately after harvest at 30° to 31° F.: 



Months 

 2 to 3 

 2 to 3 

 2 to 3 

 6 

 6 to 7 

 5 to 7 



5 to 6 



2 to 3 



2 to 6 

 2 to 4 



4 to 6 



2 to 3 



2 to 3 



2 to 3 



3 to 6 



6 to 7 



5 to 7 

 ( 2 ) 

 ( 2 ) 



September to November. 







Do. 









March to May. 





Do. 







Stored at 30° to 31° F. after 12-day transit period (not precooled): 



November to December. 









October to January. 





Stored at 30° to 31° F. after 12-day transit period (precooled): 

 Hardy -. - 



October to November. 













November to February. 

 March to May. 



Winter Nelis 





Do. 



Picked in recommended range of 11.5 to 9 pounds: i Cornice 





i Degree of firmness as indicated by the pressure tester described by Magness and Taylor (27). 

 3 Doubtful if fruit would arrive in firm enough condition to hazard commercial storage. 



KiefTer pears, if they are sound, firm, and still green when stored 

 and are held under the conditions recommended for other fall and 

 winter pears, can be expected to keep satisfactorily for 2 or 3 months. 

 If intended for storage, they should be handled with extreme care 

 during the picking and packing process, because even slightly bruised 

 or rubbed places are very likely to turn black and seriously damage 

 the sales value of the fruit. Recent investigations (28) by the United 

 States Department of Agriculture have proved that a ripening tem- 

 perature of 60° to 65° F. is essential for the attainment of maximum 

 quality in Kieffer pears for either dessert or canning purposes. 



PINEAPPLES 

 (Temperature, ripe, 40° to 45° F.; mature green, 50° to 60° F.; relative humidity, 85 to 90 percent) 



Pineapples are not adapted to long storage. Fully ripe fruits can 

 be held satisfactorily at 40° to 45° F. for 2 to 4 weeks. Mature green 

 fruits should not be held at temperatures below 50° and even at this 

 temperature some of them will retain part of the green color in the 

 skin and will fail to develop good flavor in the flesh after removal 

 to room temperature. The maximum storage period for such fruit 

 at 50° is 3 or 4 weeks. When held at 60°, mature green fruit ripens 

 slowly, but after 2 or 3 weeks losses from decay, chiefly black rot, 

 may be expected. 



The relative humidity for pineapples in storage should range from 

 about 85 to 90 percent (51, 52, 54). 



PLUMS (INCLUDING PRUNES) 

 (Temperature, 31° to 32° F.; relative humidity, 80 to 85 percent) 



Plums and prunes (fresh) are not stored extensively and are not 

 adapted to long cold storage. Such varieties as Wild Goose and 

 those of the damson type store better than the softer-fleshed plums 



