196 
JOURNAL OF HORTICULTURE AND COTTAGE GARDENER. 
[ March 9, 1893. 
uliiaiately by the cords lasting longer. The necessary width of 
canvas must be sewn together, and a binding of small cord at both 
edges adds to its strength and durability. 
Protection must commence with the appearance of the 
blossoms. The canvas should be drawn over the trees in the 
evening before the moisture descends, and it should remain in the 
morning until the frost has departed, then be let down to 
rest on the pins. Thus it is kept dry instead of lying on the 
ground. The protection should not remain over the trees 
by day unless the weather is frosty and the sun obscured. 
Whsn the weather is mild it should remain down, for needless 
protection makes the blossoms, young fruit, and foliage tender. 
But the sheltering material should be retained for use when 
needed until the season is advanced, the weather genial, and 
the leafage of the trees abundant, as the young fruits are liable to 
injury, and crops of Apricots, Peaches, and Nectarines have been 
ruined even after the blossoms have been preserved, sometimes in 
late May. With due care the canvas will serve many years.— 
-G. Abbey. 
A PROFITABLE INDUSTRY. 
Crystallising Fruits. 
Of the many methods of preserving certain fruits for sale, 
none can possibly be so profitable as that of icing Apricots, 
Grreen Gages, Cherries, small Pears, and Angelica. At present 
the French seem to enjoy a monopoly of this industry, though 
it is to be hoped such will not be the case much longer. It may 
be urged that in France there are fewer bad fruit years than in 
England, but there is, as 1 shall prove, little or no force in this 
objection. In the first place it is doubtful if a complete failure 
will ever again be experienced in this country. Of late years 
such enormous numbers of fruit trees and bushes have been planted 
in well selected varieties that a bad failure seems almost out of the 
<^uestion. Partial failures there may be, but with so many sites 
chosen a general failure is not likely to occur. Lord Sudeley, for 
instance, did not mass all his trees and bushes at Toddington, but 
rightly decided to distribute the orchards over valleys and hills. 
Some seasons favour the trees in one locality only, and some, it 
may be, in all three ; but enormous as may be the produce obtained 
from these orchards in years of plenty, there is no waste. Last 
season very few of us were prepared to learn that Plums were 
very abundant in Gloucestershire, Worcestershire, and elsewhere, 
while Cherries, by all accounts, were never more plentiful in 
Kent. 
These facts are “ ancient history ” to many of my readers, but 
"I have enlarged on them in order to dispose of a suppositious 
objection to my plea for an intelligent start being made towards 
establishing the most profitable industry connected with fruit 
culture. Even supposing our climate cannot always be relied upon 
to produce the requisite supplies of fruit for crystallising, what is 
to prevent the importation of Apricots and Green Gages, more 
especially on a large scale, whenever failures occur in this country ? 
They may not equal home produce in quality, but they are the 
same as are imported already encased in sugar, and they are 
always far too cheap to please home growers of the same class of 
fruits. 
A 1 lb. box of crystallised fruits assorted or in separate kinds 
cannot be bought for less than Is. 6d., this being the store price for 
medium quality only. The better brands, as sold by the leading 
Italian warehousemen, are considerably dearer, partly owing, 
doubtless, to the greater profits obtained by the retailers. Even 
supposing the manufacturer, if I may so term him, does not get 
more than Is., or, more likely. Is. 2d. per lb., this must be a very 
good return. Remember the weight is largely made up of sugar, 
and the best loaf sugar can be bought in large quantities for less 
than 2d. per lb. Imported Green Gages can be bought retail at 
fid., and very much less wholesale per Jb. ; Apricots realise rather 
more, but then they are also sold again at dearer rates after they 
have been iced. If the start was made other than in Kent, the 
best county for Cherries, the greatest difficulty would be experienced 
in procuring the requisite supplies of these, as only perfectly sound 
fruit is fit for the purpose. 
Angelica will grow anywhere, no great cultural skill being 
required in raising a large number of plants from seed and growing 
these to a size large enough to provide stems or hollow stalks for 
■cutting up into lengths for candying. The price obtained for this 
when properly prepared falls only a little short of that given for 
the fruits named, and it must be a profitable item. There is, then, 
nothing to deter anyone from starting this very remunerative 
it ought really to be established in connection 
with a fruit-preserving and bottling factory. I fail to see that any 
great amount of skill is required in crystallising fruits, any ordinary 
cookery book giving trustworthy recipes. In some they may be 
found under the heading of Green Gage Glacis, Crystallised 
Apricots, Iced Cherries as the case may be, all, if I am not greatly 
mistaken, being much the same thing. The processes in the case 
of Green Gages consists of pricking each particularly ripe Plum 
with its stalks intact all over with pins. They are then put in copper 
preserving pans, containing clarified boiling syrup, and kept just oft 
the fire, in which position they are left till next day, when the syrup 
is drained off, boiled, and returned on to the Plums again, and 
covered with Vine leaves. This is repeated three successive days, 
after which the fruit should be drained free of the syrup, placing 
them on wire drainers for the purpose, and put in a screen to dry. 
After this they ought to dipped in some prepared sugar, which has 
been boiled to the “ third degree,” whatever that may mean (and 
which must be worked slightly with a spoon to dull it) and placed 
upon a wire fruit drawer resting on a baking sheet. At the end of 
about ten minutes, if the sugar has been properly boiled, the fruit 
may be detached without breaking the sugar by pressing with the 
fingers from underneath. Apricots are usually split and peeled, 
and not pricked. In all other respects they require the same 
treatment as that recommended for Green Gages. Small Pears 
only are candied, these being smoothly peeled but not cut or 
pricked, and otherwise treated similarly to Green Gages. Sound ripe 
Cherries should be selected and the stones picked out with a pointed 
stick without bruising the fruit. In other respects treat similarly 
to the other fruits, only the Cherries ought to be turned occa¬ 
sionally while being dried in the screen. 
Preserving Angelica green would appear to be almost a lost art 
in this country, though a revival is taking place in two instances 
that have come under my notice. I can only find one good 
recipe, and that is by Francatelli, and which, perhaps, I shall 
be allowed to reproduce in full as follows :—“ Cut the tubes or 
stalks of Angelica into 6-inch lengths, wash them, and put them 
into a copper preserving pan with hot syrup ; cover the surface 
with Vine leaves, and set the whole to stand in the larder till the 
next day. The Angelica must then be drained on a sieve, the 
Vine leaves thrown away, half a pint of water added to the 
syrup, in which, after it has been boiled, skimmed, and strained 
into another pan, and the copper pan has been scoured clean, 
both the Angelica and the boiling syrup are to be replaced and 
the surface covered with fresh Vine leaves, and again left to 
stand in this state until next day. This process must be repeated 
three or four days running, at the end of which time the Angelica 
will be sufficiently green and done through, and should then be 
dried and otherwise treated as advised in the case of the fruits 
already alluded to. Or if preferred the Angelica tubes may be 
put into jars without breaking them. After the syrup has been 
boiled and skimmed fill up the jars, and when they are become 
cold cover them over with bladder and paper, and store in a very 
cool temperature.” 
I ought, perhaps, to add that the proper way to prepare the 
syrup several times mentioned is as follows :—To 3 lbs. of loaf 
sugar add 1 quart of water and half a white of egg ; whisk all 
together in a stew pan or sugar boiler, and set it to boil gently for 
five minutes, adding occasionally a little cold water, and then 
strain it through a napkin into a basin. 
To the male mind the foregoing brief outline of the process 
adopted in crystallising fruits may appear somewhat formidable, 
but this is an industry that females are best adapted to, and a fairly 
large undertaking should find employment for a considerable 
number of respectable women. 
What greatly adds to the appearance and consequently the 
market value of these fruits are the very showy boxes in which 
they are neatly packed. At Christmas time these boxes of French 
fruit are very freely distributed in the form of presents by leading 
grocers and Italian warehousemen—they would almost appear to 
have been invented for that very purpose. Now, if there was a 
demand for this class of box there would be plenty forthcoming, 
made in this country too. It would really be a relief to very many 
English people to see more of our products in the markets, “ Made 
in Germany ” being repeated far too often to be pleasant reading. 
I happen to know that very cheap flat or circular paper boxes with 
showy pictures on the exterior and equally ornamental accessories 
for the interior could be had from Bristol, and doubtless from 
various other large towns. Filling the boxes again would be best 
done by females. It may be asked how the fruit is to be sold to best 
advantage after it is ready for the markets ? The same large 
wholesale firms who take much of the jam that is made would be 
equally ready to pay a fair price for good English crystallised 
fruits, and that would most probably be the best method of dis¬ 
tribution open — at any rate for some time to come.— 
W. Iggulden. 
