PICKING 



11 



day is a good average for an experienced picker who does 

 his work well. 



In the younger orchards where trees with low heads and a 

 broad bearing surface in proportion to their height have been 

 developed, 75 to 100 bushels per day will be picked by piece- 

 work under normal conditions. 



Day work will yield on the average from two-thirds to 

 three-fourths as much fruit as piecework. 



(d) Determining the Proper Time for Picking. The time 

 for picking must be determined both by economic and natural 

 factors. If the crop is large, the grower cannot wait until all 

 the fruit is in the best natural condition. He must begin his 

 harvest soon enough so that he may complete it before the 

 fruit is too long past the most favorable condition. If he has 

 varieties that mature a few weeks or even days apart, it will 

 help considerably in organizing his picking operations. 



Consult the information on page 177 for the number of 

 days certain varieties require to mature as determined by the 

 United States Department of Agriculture. Always keep a 

 record of the date of full bloom of your varieties, and note 

 the variation in these dates from year to year. 



Early or summer varieties which are moved to market at 

 once should usually be picked as soon as they reach merchant- 

 able size and color and while prices are good. Later increases 

 in size and color usually are not sufiBcient to offset the rapidly 

 falling market. 



If the fruit is to be held in storage for an indefinite time 

 after picking, the proper stage for picking becomes of very 

 great importance. This is especially true of varieties subject 

 to storage scald. The firmness of the flesh of the apple, the 

 amount of yellowing or the change in ground color in the 

 unblushed portions, and the ease with which the fruit separates 

 from the spurs are among the most important evidences of 

 proper maturity. 



The degree of yellowing in the uncolored portion of the 

 fruit away from the sun is of considerable significance as an 



