FLORIDA STATE HORTICULTURAL SOCIETY 
83 
and that fruit with a perfectly sound rind 
is not innoculable by blue mold,—yet, in 
spite of this utmost care, undiscernable 
injuries will pass the graders. 
Prevention from decay from these mi¬ 
dis cover able —and accidentally overlooked 
injuries—has been the theme of my 
studies. We have seen that “Heat and 
Moisture ” are necessary conditions for 
the development of “blue mold.” To 
control these, then, is our task. Weather 
changes of “Heat & Moisture” we cannot 
control. The first element—heat—of the 
combination, has impressed itself upon 
everyone, as the most fatal and import¬ 
ant element of our dual foe—“Heat & 
Moisture.” Vast sums of money have 
been spent to artificially deprive heat of 
its venom; by icing and precooling,—un¬ 
wittingly adding more moisture—the sec¬ 
ond element in the combination that 
causes our ruin. 
The unphilosophical idea of overcom¬ 
ing decay by artificial cold, will be seen 
on a little “cool” reflection. Cold induces 
precipitation of moisture in a warmer at¬ 
mosphere than the cold produced; hence 
in trying to control our arch enemy— 
“Heat & Moisture,” while we may have 
lessened to some extent the effects of heat, 
by cold, we have added more moisture, 
which we believe to be the most danger¬ 
ous factor, as we know that decay, with 
moisture present, will go on, up to, and 
slowly, after the freezing point, and froz¬ 
en oranges are not marketable. 
In bulletin 63, page 48, we find : “The 
investigations of the Bureau of Plant In¬ 
dustry have demonstrated, that Florida 
oranges may be transported to market un¬ 
der ventilation, with a minimum of loss 
from decay, even during periods of warm 
and humid weather, if sufficient care is 
taken to preserve the skin unbroken .” 
And on page 50: “Precooling may not 
safely be depended upon to offset decay 
following mechanical injuries.” 
Precooling plus icing, are the last at¬ 
tempts at control of heat and decay. But 
in the presence of mechanical injuries—■ 
“cannot be depended upon”—are a fail¬ 
ure, and expensive to the tune of 15c and 
more per box. Now I ask you to follow 
me in a philosophial study of the possibil¬ 
ity and probability of preventing decay— 
“blue mold”—by turning our attention to 
the other element—moisture—number 2 
of our-arch dual enemy “Heat & Mois¬ 
ture.” I say philosophical study, for there 
have not been millions of dollars spent in 
experiment on this half of the combina¬ 
tion, as applied to shipment of citrus 
fruits. We may find it easier and cheaper 
to prevent moisture, than heat. If we 
can banish moisture, the heat necessarily 
encountered in the transit of fruit to mar¬ 
ket will become perfectly harmless. 
Receiving encouragement from L. B. 
Skinner and other growers, as to the cor¬ 
rectness of theory of drying fruit for 
shipment, I began correspondence to find 
the means for applying heat in the most 
controllable and cheapest way possible— 
steam radiation. 
Although there were numerous manu¬ 
facturers of steam heat radiating appli- 
cances for house-heating, etc., I found 
none who were prepared, or cared to 
adopt appliances to packing house plants. 
Being a member of the “Lake Region 
