202 JOURNAL OF THE ROYAL HORTICULTURAL SOCIETY. 



market. Late apples should always be left as long on the trees 

 as possible and carefully stored ; especially does this apply to a 

 season of heavy crops. Year after year have I known apples 

 sold in the autumn with the early or mid-season varieties which, 

 if kept a month or two longer, would have made fifty or even a 

 hundred per cent, more money ; they also help to glut many an 

 already over-flowing market, and lower prices of fruit which 

 must be sold. Besides these reasons, late apples will not keep 

 fresh and plump if gathered before they are ripe, and must be 

 marketed with the early fruit, whatever the price. In hot, dry 

 seasons much fruit ripens prematurely, and often in such a 

 season there are a great many maggoty fruits, which fall and cause 

 inexperienced growers to think the crop wants gathering, but 

 it is better to pick up and market the windfall apples frequently, 

 and leave the rest to fully mature. It is often wonderful how 

 late apples will colour up and improve in appearance the last 

 few days when nearly ripe. The general opinion is that apples 

 should be perfectly dry when picked, but, from my own ex- 

 perience of about twenty-five years in marketing and storing 

 large quantities, I have never found any harm done to the apples 

 for market purposes if picked when a little damp, so that they 

 are not very wet and stored so thickly as to heat ; indeed, in many 

 cases I believe they have kept fresher and plumper, though, 

 perhaps, at the expense of their best flavour if used for dessert ; 

 probably I shall not have all gardeners agree with me on this 

 point, but I speak from my own experience as a grower for 

 market. 



Pears in gathering do not require quite the same treatment 

 as apples. Early pears should always be gathered for market 

 before fully ripe, and marketed rather under than over ripe. 

 Late pears should, like late apples, be left to fully mature on 

 the trees, or they do not ripen or keep well. 



Mode of Gathering Apples and Pears. 



You cannot do this too carefully ; much loss is incurred by 

 carelessness in gathering. All fruit should be carefully placed 

 in the basket (which is preferably lined or padded, and if with 

 a swing-handle all the better) ; fruit should never be dropped into 

 the basket, but placed by the hand ; every time a fruit drops on 

 another it not only bruises itself, but bruises the one it falls on. 



