STORAGE OP CALIFORNIA TABLE GRAPES. 
13 
ard size for the future. This drum holds from 33 to 36 pounds of 
grapes net. The drum used for the commercial shipments of 1912 
will be discussed later. 
The Almeria grapes imported from Spain are packed in barrels 
made of thin staves of oak, chestnut, or pine supported by wooden 
hoops. As was previously stated, the average net weight of fruit 
in these packages is about 47 pounds. These barrels are sometimes 
broken open in transit and the grapes greatly damaged by rough 
handling. 
PACKING GRAPES IN REDWOOD SAWDUST. 
The importance of packing quickly and of storing and cooling 
promptly can not be too strongly emphasized, especially when a filler 
Fig. 2. — A stack of field boxes of grapes, showing the method used to cool the fruit dur- 
ing the night. 
of redwood sawdust is used. The temperature of the grapes at the 
time of packing is an important factor in preserving the fruit in good 
condition during a long holding period. Sawdust has a strong insu- 
lating effect, and even under the best conditions cooling within the 
package is comparatively slow. It is therefore imperative to have 
the grapes as cool as possible when packed. All fruit picked during 
the hot part of the day should be cooled overnight by stacking the 
field boxes in the vineyard, and the grapes should be packed the 
next morning before they have a chance to warm. In this way the 
