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^-Circular No. 447 



LIB! - \ ■ Y 

 REGOVt-D 



* JAN 1 4 1942 * 



U. S« Dapsrtsafflli 



October 1937 • Washington, D. (^ 

 ■j Revised January 1942 



UNITED STATES DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE 



The Freezing Temperatures of Some Fruits, 

 Vegetables, and Florists' Stocks 1 



By R. C. Wright, -physiologist, Division of Fruit and Vegetable Crops and Diseases, 



Bureau of Plant Industry 



CONTENTS 



Introduction 



Freezing points of fruits. 



Apples 



Cherries 



Dates 



Grapes 



Oranges 



Peaches 



Pears 



Plums 



Strawberries 



Page 

 1 

 3 

 3 

 6 

 6 



Freezing points of fruits— Continued. 



Blackberries, raspberries, and cranberries. 

 Miscellaneous fruits 



Freezing points of vegetables 



Potatoes 



Sweetpotatoes 



Tomatoes 



Sweet corn 



Miscellaneous vegetables 



Freezing points of florists' stocks 



Summary 



Paee 



^ ^^^^^^ » ^^^^ 



INTRODUCTION 



Knowledge concerning the freezing temperatures of various kinds 

 and varieties of fruits, vegetables, and florists' stocks is of considerable 

 commercial value to persons interested in the growing, shipping, or 

 handling of these products. 



The extent of damage due to the freezing of produce in transit 

 naturally varies from year to year, but it is usually very heavy, 

 aggregating frequently several hundred thousand dollars during a year. 

 This in general applies not only to such products as apples and pota- 

 toes, most of which are grown in the North and harvested and shipped 

 in the late fall and winter, but to products that are grown in the South 

 and Southwest during the winter and shipped to northern markets. 

 This latter group includes citrus fruits, strawberries, tomatoes, lettuce, 

 string beans, cabbage, cauliflower, eggplant, etc. Cars of these food 

 products often leave the shipping point under refrigeration and in 24 

 to 36 hours may pass into a zone of freezing temperatures. As they 

 approach the more northern markets they may be exposed to tempera- 

 tures several degrees below the freezing point of the commodity. 

 Under certain conditions when harvested in warm weather some of 



1 This circular is a revision of and supersedes Department Bulletin 1133, The Freezing Temperatures of 

 Some Fruits, Vegetables, and Cut Flowers. 



306686—41 



