116 
JOURNAL  OF  HORTICULTURE  AND  COTTAGE  GARDENER, 
February  11,  19C4. 
Grading  and  Packing  Fruit  and  Vegetabies. 
{Concluded  from  par/e  47.) 
Seakalo  can  also  be  sorted,  the  best  grown  and  whitest  in 
bundles  set  upright  in  baskets.  •  .  i 
Tomatoes  demand  the  greatest  care  in  sorting  ;  two,  three, 
and  even  four  grades  may  be  formed.  The  best  in  boxes  or 
shallow'  baskets.  The  nio.st  even  and  brightest  coloured  fruits 
take  the  lead;  there  is  a  special  demand  for  the  largest  liand- 
some  fruits  in  some  markets,  hut  the  principal  general  sale  is  for 
good,  even-shaped,  moderate-sized,  uniform  samples.  Cucumbers 
are  graded  into  two  or  three  sizes;  and  Y®g®f^b»le  Marrows  are 
also  sorted,  but  in  some  places  large  specimens  of  the  latter  are 
most  in  demand,  while  in  others  a  medium  size  is  chiefly 
required. 
Amaryllis  Belladonna  (1  nat.  sizej 
Salading,  like  Lettuces  and  Endive,  can  occasionally  be 
.separated  into  two  grades,  according  to  the  solidity  and  blanch¬ 
ing  of  tlieir  hearts,  but  as  a  rule  a  uniform  samiile  of  one  value 
is  preferable,  to  be  regulated  by  the  gathering. 
The  essential  general  rules  in  grading  vegetables  of  all  kinds 
are  the  following: — (1)  Exclude  all  immature,  overgrowm, 
coarse,  or  defective  specimens  from  the  leading  grades.  (2) 
Make  each  grade  as  uniform  as  possible.  (3)  Let  freshness  and 
fitness  for  use  be  the  characteri.stics  of  all  vegetables  when 
consigned  to  market  or  consumers.  To  aid  in  all  this  only  the 
best  varieties  obtainable  should  he  growm,  and  grow'ers  should 
watch  closelj'  for  every  real  improvement  on  old  sorts. 
Packing  for  Sale. 
Wherever  fruits  or  vegetables  have  to  be  transferred  a 
distance  by  road  or  rail,  the  best  culture  and  most  careful 
grading  may  lose  all  their  value  through  neglectful  packing. 
That  many  of  the  defects  in  market  consignments  are  either 
due  to  this,  or  materially  increased  thereby,  the  majority  of 
salesmen  can  confirm,  and  the  complaints  on  tliis  score  are  as 
frequent  as  those  regarding  inattention  to  grading.  In  dealing 
with  fruits  the  es.sentials  for  success  are  as  follows: — (1)  LT.se 
only  perfectly  sound  fruits.  (2)  Pack  firmly,  without  crush¬ 
ing.  (3)  Use"  the  be.st  ela.stic  odourless  materials  as  packing. 
(4)  Place  all  choice  and  ripe  fruits  in  small  quantities  and 
shallow'  packages. 
In  the  home  trade  baskets  are  much  more  extensively  used 
than  boxes,  and  the  most  common  are  round  baskets  w  ithout 
lids,  of  the  bushel,  half-bushel,  or  half-sieve  types.  I  hey  are 
strong  and  durable,  but  are  objectionable  for  all  the  best  fruits, 
as,  even  with  the  most  careful  packing,  the  top  layers  are 
liable  to  be  bruised,  and  under  careless  methods  they  are 
certain  to  be  damaged.  When  Apples,  Pears,  Plums,  Cherries, 
or  Gooseberries  are  sent  in  such  baskets  a  covering  of  pairer, 
w'ith  straw'  or  other  material,  is  placed  on  the  top  and  secured 
by  cross  pieces  of  Willow  or  Hazel,  the  points  of  which  are 
forced  through  the  sides  of  the  basket  beloAV  the  rim.  I  lat 
baskets  with  lids  are  preferable  but  expensive,  and  the  diffi¬ 
culty  with  all  these  is  that  they  must  be  charged  for  or  returned. 
In  extensive  dealings  with  market  salesmen  baskets  are  supplied 
at  very  little  co.st  to  the  producer,  hut  where  it  is  desired  to 
promote  more  direct  communication  between  the  grower  and 
retailer  or  consumer  some  other  method  is  preferable,  or  the 
producer  must  provide  his  ow'n  baskets.  It  would  be  helpful 
in  many  di.stricts  if  a  local  industry  could  be  developed  in  cheap 
basket  making;  there  are  few'  places  where  suitable  Willows 
could  not  be  grown,  and  the  basket-making  might  be  performed 
in  the  winter  evenings.  Eor  useful  information  regarding 
Willow'S  and  Osiers  suitable  for  the  purpose  named  see  Board 
of  Agriculture  Leaflet  No.  30. 
Much  could  be  said  in  favour  of  boxes  for  fruits,  and,  w'herc 
only  small  sizes  are  employed,  they  may  be  purcha.sed,  or  made 
so  cheaply  that  they  can  be  included  in  the  price  of  the  fruiU 
and  thus  all  the  trouble  of  returning  or  collecHng  empties  is 
avoided.  Their  more  general  use  under  the  right  conditions 
would  assist  producers  to  avoid  overstocking  the  markets  in 
seasons  of  heavy  crops,  and,  by  facilitating  direct  communi¬ 
cation  with  the  consumers,  secure  better  prices.  In  a  small 
w'ay,  boxes  can  be  made  at  home  at  a  cost  of  l^d.  to  Is.  each  ; 
on  a  larger  scale,  with  the  use  of  machinery,  they  may  be  turned 
ont  at  about  8s.  to  50s.  per  100,  according  to  the  size,  and 
boxes  costing  Id.  to  (id.  can  always  be  given  w  ith  the  best  grade 
of  fruit,  usually  even  with  profit.  Many  of  the  leading  railway 
companies  have  recognised  this  fact,  and  now'  supply  lioxes  of 
various  sizes  at  Is.  6d.  to  os.  per  dozen,  while  several 
manufacturers  also  suiiply  to  large  orders  at  vei'y 
reasonable  prices. 
Various  materials  are  available  for  packing  pur¬ 
poses;  but  much  the  best  are  the  several  grades  of 
wood  wool  now  prepared,  the  coarsest  being  suitable 
for  large  packages  and  heavy'  fruits,  and  the  finest 
softest  samples  for  the  choicest  and  ripe  fruits.  But 
wherever  it  is  to  be  in  contact  even' with  Apples  and 
Pears  only'  the  softest  make  should  be  employed  :  the 
rougher  samples  can  be  used  for  the  bottom,  or  filling 
up  at  the  top.  All  choice  and  delicate  fruits  should 
be  encircled  with  bands  of  folded  soft  tissue  paper, 
having  a  glazed  surface,  which  must  be  in  contact 
with  the  fruit.  This  is  also  required  to  place  over  the  top 
layers,  but  a  stronger  paper  is  used  for  unripe  Apples  or  Pears., 
In  the  actual  work  of  ])acking,  an  even  layer  of  wood  wool 
is  placed  at  the  bottom  of  the  box  or  basket  this  being  covered 
with  a  sheet  of  pai^er,  and  upon  it  the  fruits  to  he  disposed  of 
are  placed  firmly.  The  best  Plums,  Pears,  or  dessert  Apples 
should  never  be  in  more  than  tw'o  layers,  and  in  the  smallest 
boxes  holding  one  layer  they  travel  in  the  finest  condition.  If 
only  one  layer  of  fruits  is  made,  the  packing  material  at  the 
bottom,  and  that  at  the  top,  besides  the  folded  paper  band  round 
each  fruit,  will  be  all  that  is  es.sential ;  hut  if  there  are  two 
lay'ers  they  must  be  separated  by  two  sheets  of  paper,  and 
"With  green  vegetables,  such  as  Cabbages,  Savoys,  Kale,  and 
Brussels  Sprouts,  the  principal  point  is  to  see  that  each  sample 
is  unifoiun  and  in  the  be.st  condition,  which  is  largely  a  question 
of  care  in  gathering.  For  ordinary  markets  the  two  first-named 
must  he  large  and  with  solid  hearts  ;  for  special  sale  and  for 
sending  direct  to  consumers  a  smaller  size,  but  possessing  all 
the  other  e.ssential  characters,  is  often  preferable.  Brussels 
Sprouts  should  alw  ays  be  .sorted  into  tw'o  grades,  all  the  firmest 
and  mo,st  compact  into  one,  and  the  looser,  rougher  sprouts 
into  another  ;  the  increa.sed  price  of  the  first  w'ill  pay'  for  this 
in  the  majority  of  cases.  To  Cauliflowers  and  Broccoli  similar 
i-emarks  apply ;  the  most  even  and  w'hitest  heads  constitute  the 
first  grade,  the  rougher  and  discoloured  the  second.  As  w'ith 
Cabbages,  large  heads  are  required  in  general  markets,  but  for 
the  best  sales  moderate-sized,  perfect  samples  are  the  most 
satisfactory. 
Other  crops  pay  for  attention  in  the  same  W'ay.  Rhubarb 
can  be  classed  in  tw'o  grades,  the  longest,  straightest,  and  best 
coloured  forming  No.  1  bundles.  Celery  may  be  divided  into 
two  or  three  grades,  the  heaviest  and  most  solid  in  bundles  for 
salad,  the  others  loo.se  for  soups.  A.sparagus,  too,  should  be 
placed  in  two  or  three  grades,  according  to  the  length,  sub-' 
stance,  and  blanching;  the  smallest  (.sprue)  for  soups;  all  the 
best  in  bundles  of  25,  50,  or  100,  the  last  in  larger  numbers. 
