9?6 



THE GARDENERS* MAGAZINE. 



December 21, 1912 



allow a packer to work with comfort, avoid- 

 ing back bending in all cases. Throe feet 

 is about right. The covering should be of 

 strong cauvas allowed to hang rather loosely. 

 The edgeti of the table should be padded to 

 prevent bruising of the fruit. Care should 

 be taken to have the table cleared of fruit 

 six or eight tinieci a day^ otlierwi.se the fruit 

 wdll be considerably bruised by continnal 

 handling. 



" To make a success of ibox packing a great 

 deal of time and patience at the start is 

 necessary. Some growers have not suceeded 

 sufficiently to make it worth while changing 

 from the barrel pack. This is to be regretted, 

 and it in nafe to sa5^ had they persevered 

 very good renult^ wonld have been sliowu. 

 The most important point in. box packing is 

 to aim for the same standard of quality that 

 has obtained for the western growers their 

 marketf^ and high prices. We have the 

 flavour iu Ontario, so our next concern is 



clumsy and occupy too much space. Single 



and double corrugated cardboard or heavy 

 soft cardboard or paper will answer the pur- 

 pose, especially for export, and will pre- 

 vent a good deal of bruising. 



** The two ways of packing most used are 

 the diagonal and square methods. The 

 diagonal is preferable for the reason that it 

 causes less bruising. One apple fits in. be- 

 tween two in the form of a triangle and 

 allows more pressure to be applied diagon- 

 ally across the box instead of having to jam 

 them as in. the square pack." 



In packing apples that are not wrapped 



in paj^er, the Canadian growers proceed in 

 such manner that the bottom of tlie box, 

 when l>eing packed, is the top when opened ; 



but if the fruits are wrapped the box is 

 top side up, and the last layer is th^^^^-f^e. 

 If there are to be. four tiers in the box, and 

 a wrapped diagonal pack is used, the first 

 tier is started with two aonles across the 



considerably 



CHOICK DKSSKHT ATPLKS PAClvED IN A SINGLE LAYEE, 



to have well-colf)\irt'd, ch'an fruit. The apples 

 should be graded closely, acc<)rding to size. 

 This not only facilitates packing, but also 

 imrproves the appearance of the box when 

 opened. Box packing requires considerable 

 practice and >^kill to reduce the cost to a 

 minimum. 



High-gradkL* fruit should be wrapped ; 

 use a light Manilla paper. Much of the paper 

 at present in use is too thin, and where the 

 apples sweat it presents afterwards a very 

 untidy appearance. No time is lost by wrap- 

 ping, for while the packer is reaching for 

 the apple with one hand lie pick> up t)ic 

 paper with the otlicr. TImmi, too, a wrap[)r(l 

 apple remains in place and the shifting so 

 troublesome in unwrapped apples iis overcome. 

 The boxes should be paper lined as it insures 

 keeping dirt and odours away from the 

 fruit, and adds to the attractiveness of the 

 package. Pads are sometimes used in the 

 top« and bottoms of the boxes. ITie thick 



.pateut pads made with excelsior filling are 



>^cc(>nd tier, two or three across the third, 

 four, etc. Tliis method of packing is to en- 

 sure the fourth tier or face opening up with 

 an apple in each corner. If the fruits are 

 not wrapped the face is started bv placing 

 an apple in each corner, the second tier is 

 then started with two fruits. 



We give three illustrations of the Eng- 

 lish methods of packing apples. In two of 

 the boxes the fruits are packed in single 

 layers, a method which is especially adapted 

 to the requirements of those who make a spe- 

 ciality of supplying small quantities of the 

 choice kinds. This method of packing is also 

 a very good one for private gardens where 

 ciilinary and desr>.ert apple-, havi^ to }>e sent 

 n. <'<>inpara1ively small ([uantities to the 

 town houses or as presents to friends resi- 

 dent al a distance. For commercial pur- 

 l>o>cs It IS preferal)]e to pack the culinary 

 a,)ples and the commoner dessert fruits in 

 boxes of a depth that will allow of about 

 four layer, or tier, in each box, as the coet 



of packing will then be 

 less. 



It will be of interest to mention in this 

 connection that the Inspection and Sale Act 

 which was passed a few years since by the 

 Canadian Legislature, renders it necessary 

 for the market growers in the Dominion 

 to exercise considerable care in the packing 

 of apples. Among other things it is enacted 

 that— 



Ev^ery person who, by himself or through the 

 agency of another person, packs fruit in a closed 

 package, intended for sale, shall cause the 

 package to be marked in a plain and indelible 

 manner, in letters not less than half an inch in 

 length, before it is taken from the premises 

 where it is packed, — 



(a) with the initials of his Christian , 



and his full surname and address, or, in 

 th-e* casie of a firm or coiporation, with 

 the hvxn or corporate name and address; 



(b) with the name of the variety or varieties; 

 and 



(c) with the designation of the grade of fruit, 



which shall include one of the following 

 four marks, viz. : Fancy, No, 1, No. 2, 

 No. 3. 



2. Such mark may be accompanied by any 

 other designation of grade or brand', if that 

 designation or brand is not inconsistent with, or 

 m a r kc'd more c o n spi c u ou ? 1 y than, t he one of 

 the said four marks which is used on the said 

 package. 



No person shall sell, or offer, expose, or hav^ 

 in his possession for sale, any fruit packed,— 



(a) in a closed package, and intended for sale, 



unless such package is marked as re- 

 quired by the provisions of this Act; 



(b) in a clo-sed package, upon which package is 

 marked any designation which represents 

 such fruit as of 



(i) Fancy quality, unlessi such fruit con- 



sists of well -grown specimens of one 

 for the variety, of normal shape, fre^ 

 least normal size and of good colour 

 for the variety, of normal shape,, free 

 from worm holes, bruises; scab, and 

 other defects and properly packed. 



(ii) No. 1 quality, unleas such fruit con- 

 sists of well-grown specimens of one 

 variety, sound, of not less than 

 medium size, and of good colour for 

 the variety, of normal shape, and not 

 less than ' 90 per c-entum free from 

 scab, worm holes, bruises, and other 

 defe<ts, and properly ]>acked. 



(iii) No. 2 quality, unless ftuch fruit ui- 

 ciudes no culls, and con-sist.^ of speci- 

 mens of not less than nearly mediiun 

 size for the variety, and not less than 

 80 per centum free from worm holes 

 and such ether defects as cause mate- 

 rial waste, and properly packed. 



"(c) in any package in which the faced or 

 shown surface gives a false i-epresenta- 

 tion of the contents of such package; and 

 it shall be considered a false representa- 

 tion when more than 15 per centum of 

 such fruit is substantially smaller in 9iz€ 

 than, or inferior in grade to, or different 

 in variety from, the faced or shown sur- 

 face of such package. 

 WTien apples are packed in Canada for export 

 or for sale by the box, they shall be packed in 

 good and strong boxes of seasoned wood, the 

 inside dimen&ions of which shall not be lefS 

 than ten inches in depth, eleven inches m 

 width, and twenty inches in length, represent- 

 ing as nearly as*^ possible 2,200 cubic inches. 



-ew Canadian Homesteads. 



•During the first six months of 1912 home- 

 stead entries for the four western provinces 

 of Canada, recorded by the officials of the 

 Interior Department, numbered 18,524, as 

 against 19,657 for the same period in 1911. 

 a decrease of 1,133. Tliese homesteads repre- 

 sent an area of 3 million acres which has 

 been given away free of charge to new ar- 

 rivals. For Manitoba the entries totalled 

 1,710 as against 1,459 in 1911, and for Britisn 

 Columbia they increased from 124 to 138. 

 Both Saskatchewan and All^erta show de- 

 creases. The entries for Saskatchewan/^ 

 the six months stood at 9,340 as agamst 

 10,4^9 for the first half of 1911 : while the 

 Alberta entries fell from 7,585 to 7,336. 

 During the month of June 3,988 homesteads 

 were entered by applicants whose countri€« 

 of origin were as follows: Canada, 1^276 j 

 British Isles, 662; United States, 1,087; all 

 other countries 973. 



