« 



THE FRUIT-ROOM. 489 



the moisture it contains, and thus act in 

 the same way as light, producing shrivel- 

 ling, and destroying that plump appear- 

 ance which gives beauty to the fruit. 

 Another reason is, that an equable tem- 

 perature is scarcely to be maintained when 

 the air is constantly changed. It may be 

 said, indeed, that the sweating of the 

 fruit throws into the air so much fresh 

 moisture that constant ventilation be- 

 comes indispensable, in order to remove 

 this excessive humidity. But we answer, 

 that no fruit should be allowed to sweat 

 in the fruit-room." The means of venti- 

 lation should certainly be provided, but 

 it should be had recourse to as seldom as 

 possible. 



" The house/' says Duro, in the work 

 last quoted, " in the first place should be 

 ventilated in the ceiling — as, from the 

 moment of storing until the apple is ab- 

 solutely decayed, an organic transposition 

 of its parts is constantly going on ; there- 

 fore it is important to allow the confined 

 air of the room, which becomes highly 

 impregnated with the effluvia, to pass off. 

 Any animal or vegetable substance in a 

 sound state is more liable to become dis- 

 eased when placed in an atmosphere im- 

 pregnated with effluvia ; but again, on 

 the other hand, it is well known that 

 apples and pears shrivel and lose their 

 flavour when exposed, particularly in 

 spring, to the free admission of external 

 air. This may be attributed not so much 

 to the free admission of air, as to the 

 increased temperature which the air in 

 spring has attained. The increased heat 

 of the atmosphere then dries up the juices 

 of the apple, and destroys its flavour : in 

 fact, fruit so exposed becomes tasteless 

 and tough. Now it appears," he says, 

 " quite necessary to admit air, or rather 

 to allow the impure air to pass off quickly 

 at the ceiling, without creating a com- 

 plete current in the house, and to exclude 

 the admission of external air at the doors 

 and windows as much as possible, to keep 

 down the temperature of the room, for on 

 this a great deal depends. Could the 

 same kind of temperature be maintained 

 in spring as during whiter, there can be 

 no doubt but fruit would keep much 

 better, and be better flavoured." 



On the construction of a fruit-room 

 according to the foregoing principles, the 

 following directions are given : " It should 



VOL. I. 



be near the gardener's residence, and 

 sufficiently large to enable him to store 

 away the whole winter produce of his 

 trees without heaping or confusion. The 

 walls should be thick enough to prevent 

 the entrance of frost, which may be 

 effected either by building them hollow, 

 or by guarding them externally by a casing 

 of earth. It would be better without 

 windows; but if they are considered 

 necessary, they ought to be made with 

 double sashes, and wadded shutters to fix 

 on the inside. If the room is covered by 

 a roof, its ceiling should be ' pugged,' or 

 rendered frost-proof by some other means, 

 such as effective thatch. It would, how- 

 ever, be better if the fruit-room had a 

 chamber over it, in which the gardener 

 can arrange his summer fruit, sweat his 

 winter store before laying it by, and pre- 

 pare his dessert as required. In that case 

 the fruit-room itself might be communi- 

 cated with by a trap-door, and the ordinary 

 entrance to it in the outer wall would 

 seldom require to be used." 



Ventilation is only to be applied so far 

 as may be necessary for getting rid of the 

 foul air that would of course accumulate 

 in a place shut closely up, and containing 

 a quantity of vegetable matter. This 

 ventilation might be effected by having 

 wooden chimneys 6 or 8 inches square, 

 passing from the roof of the room into the 

 air above, and these secured against rain 

 by a coping in the usual manner, and pro- 

 vided with a sliding or flap door or lid 

 below, to prevent circulation when not 

 required. Everything tending to damp 

 or decomposition should be carefully kept 

 out of the fruit-room. " In all cases the 

 fruit-room should be built on a dry bot- 

 tom. If the situation is low, the founda- 

 tions must be raised in proportion, so as 

 to elevate it completely above the damp 

 of the earth ; and if it is floored with con- 

 crete, or some substance impervious to 

 moisture, and in which mice cannot bur- 

 row, so much the better. 



" Supposing that space enough can be 

 afforded, the fruit-room would be im- 

 proved by being divided into two or three 

 compartments, to separate the ripening 

 fruit from that which will be later. In 

 such a case the door should be at the end 

 of the room, and the fruit which ripens 

 first should be next the door, while that 

 which is latest should be stored up in the 



3 Q 



