SPOILAGE OF CBANBEEEIES AFTEE HABVEST. 
WATER STORAGE. 
Storing cranberries under water is frequently recommended as a 
means of keeping them for long periods. Berries stored in this way 
soon die as a result of smothering. They can not, however, wither, 
nor do they decay, since the growth of rot-producing fungi is pre- 
vented. Water-stored berries do not have the bitter taste character- 
istic of most smothered fruit and are therefore suitable for cook- 
ing if used as soon as removed from the water. Such berries are, 
of course, unsalable. 
The effect of storing cranberries in tight packages and under 
water as compared with storage in ventilated packages was shown 
by a series of tests made at the State experimental cranberry bog, 
East Wareham, Mass. In one experiment, uniform lots of appar- 
ently sound berries, of both the Early Black and the Howe varie- 
ties, were stored dry in closed bottles, under water in bottles, and in 
ventilated boxes. The results of this test are given in Table II. 
Table II. — Results of storing cranberries under different conditions for 36 
days. 
Conditions of storage. 
Number of berries. 
Total 
spoiled 
Total. 
Rotten. 
Smothered. 
(per 
cent). 
Temperature 3° to 8° C (37° to 46° F.): 

777 
382 
All. 
None apparent. 

a 100 
1,054 
1,364 
74 
28 
a As explained in the text, these berries were still fit for cooking. 
The results shown in Table II are typical of those obtained in other 
tests, some of which were carried out at much higher temperatures 
and with other varieties of cranberries, and have been further sub- 
stantiated on a commercial scale by shipments in various types of 
packages and by storage tests. These will be considered later. 
PREVENTION OF SMOTHERING. 
Smothering may be prevented by ventilation. Berries should be 
stored in ventilated boxes, never in barrels, and the boxes should be 
so piled as to allow circulation of air through the berries. Cran- 
berry storehouses should be provided with ventilators, which should 
be opened whenever cold air can be admitted without danger of 
freezing. Ventilated packages should be used where practicable. 
These points are also of importance in the control of fungous dis- 
eases and are discussed further in that connection. 
