MUSKMBLONS 



1389 



weigM as Emerald Gem. They are oval 

 shaped, shallow ribbed, netted and green 

 fleshed. Paul Rose is an early variety 

 belonging to this class, but has salmon- 

 colored flesh. Montreal produces a me- 

 dium-sized (3 to 6 pounds), oval-shaped, 

 shallow-ribbed, netted and green-fleshed 

 melon. Long Yellow produces a large 

 (over 6 pounds) melon, which is long- 

 shaped (two to three times as long as 

 broad), deep-ribbed, lightly netted, with 

 salmon-colored flesh. It belongs to the 

 true cantaloup class and is a mid-season 

 variety. Hackensack is also a true 

 cantaloup. Its fruits are of medium size 

 (3 to 6 pounds), flattened at the ends, 

 prominently netted and have green-col- 

 ored flesh. Surprise belongs to the same 

 class as Hackensack, but has salmon- 

 colored flesh. It is a late variety. Osage 

 produces medium-sized (3 to 6 pounds) 

 oblong melons, which are shallow ribbed, 

 very nearly smooth or slightly netted 

 and have a salmon-colored flesh. It is a 

 mid-season variety and fruits over a 

 long period. 



Handling the Crop 



Even if a standard variety of melon 

 is grown and standard packages em- 

 ployed, unless the melons are handled 

 in such a way as to reach the market 

 in a condition acceptable to the trade, 

 the best results in prices and profits 

 cannot be secured. The methods em- 

 ployed in the picking, grading and pack- 

 ing of the melons have an important 

 influence upon their condition and ap- 

 pearance when they reach the market. 



John W. Lloyd, 



TJrbaiia, 111 



Organization of the Working Force 



Since the entire melon patch must be 



picked over each day, and since the 



melons must be shipped the day they 



are picked, it is essential that a larger 



force of workmen be maintained than 



would seem necessary to handle the crop 



early in the season when the picking is 



light. It invariably happens that at 



some time during the season the melons 



ripen very rapidly, so that a patch which 



has been yielding 50 to 75 baskets per 



day may suddenly produce over two 



hundred; and unless the grower is pre- 

 pared for such an emergency, some day 

 he will have more melons than he can 

 handle and will lose a large quantity on 

 account of over-ripeness. To be pre- 

 pared to handle the heavy pickings, the 

 working force must be thoroughly or- 

 ganized early in the season, and while 

 there is plenty of time, each person 

 trained for his particular duty, so that 

 when the inevitable rush does come the 

 entire force will be able to work at its 

 maximum capacity. 



The number of workmen needed would 

 depend upon the size of the plantation 

 and the quantity of melons to be 

 handled. Ten persons can easily pick 

 and pack 200 baskets of melons in a 

 half day and do the work in a proper 

 manner, provided the force has been 

 well organized and trained, a suitable 

 packing shed constructed and other facil- 

 ities provided. The distribution of these 

 workmen would be about as follows: 

 Five pickers who stay in the patch and 

 merely carry their filled baskets to the 

 end of the row or to a driveway through 

 the patch if the plantation is wide; one 

 man to carry or haul the filled baskets 

 to the shed and keep the pickers sup- 

 plied with empty baskets; one sorter or 

 grader who holds the most responsible 

 position on the force and must be an 

 expert judge of melons; two packers, and 

 one boy to put on covers and stencil 

 the packages ready for shipment. 



With such a force in operation the 

 melons are removed to the shade of the 

 shed immediately after picking and are 

 handled directly from the picking bas- 

 kets to the packing table as they are 

 sorted so that they suffer no injury from 

 repeated handling, A supply of empty 

 baskets for the packers is kept under 

 the packing table where they are within 

 easy reach. The packer sets his filled 

 baskets on the ground behind Mm where 

 the "lidder" puts on the covers and sten- 

 cils and then stacks the baskets at the 

 back of the shed. 



PicMng 



There is considerable difference of 

 opinion as to the exact stage of ma- 



