APPLE

‘The cultivation of the apple antedates history—remains of the fruit have been found in Switzerland’s prehistoric lake dwellings. Its early form was probably that of the common crab-apple of Europe and western Asia (see CraB-appLr). Of its present varieties there are several you sand. The cultivated tree is at its prime when about fifty years old and will bear fruit for considerably more than a hundred years. North America is the greatest apple country in the world, its annual crop exceeding 100,000,000 barrels— Washington, New York, Virginia, and Arkansas leading in the order named. In early New England days the fruit was chiefly valued for its cider product, but its uses are now widely diversified—for eating raw, cooked, and preserved, and in the making of jams, jellies, and vinegar—as well as, still, for cider. Because of its pectin content, vast quantities are employed in jam and jelly making—the latter consuming all available canning and cider-mill by-products— cores, skins, and pomace. The pomace is also a good stock-food. There are many uses which could profitably be extended. Apple juice is, when well made, a beverage which appeals to many palates, and on evaporation it vields an excellent sirup both for the table and for cooking. A ripe, raw, good-quality fruit, if well masticated, digests in about ninety minutes. Unle well masticated it is liable to undergo fermentation. ‘‘An apple a day keeps the doctor away’’ is an old saying—but, as often, hastily consumed by children, gulping down pieces of considerable size without chewing them, the ‘‘apple a day’’ frequently results in increasing the doctor’s practise! Lightly cooked as apple-sauce (a finely divided form) and consumed in moderate quantities, it is an exceptionally safe and wholesome fruit. The custom of serving apple-sauce with roast pork, rich goose, and similar dishes is based on sound reasons. The many varieties differ widely in appearance, flavor, time of ripening, and popularity. Fifteen kinds are shown on the color-pages opposite. Of these, Marly Harvest and Red June are early, or ‘‘summer,’’ apples, and the Fall Pippin, Graven stein, and Maiden Blush are chiefly of the autumn crop. ‘The remaining ten are ‘‘winter’’ apples, i.e. late apples of the right quality for keeping over the winter. Other popular kinds are: Swmmer—Horse, Oldenburg, Red Astrakhan; Autiumn— Wealthy, Yellow.Transparent; and Wanter—Arkansas, Ben Davis, Fameuse, Gano, Grimes, Jonathan, Limber twig, McIntosh, Mi ouri, Northwestern, Rome Beauty, Stayman Winesap, Tolman, Tompkins King, White Pearmain, Winesap, Wolf River, Yellow Bellflower, and York Imperial. The Baldwin and the Ben Davis lead all other apples in total crop. Next come the Northern Spy, Winesap, Rhode Island Greening, — Beauty, and Harly Harvest. Jt will be noted that, with the one exception of the Warly Harvest, they are all winter apples. The Ben Davis, though so near the head of the list, is thick-skinned and coarse fleshed, and generally poor in flavor. It is of good size and an attractive bright red, a first-cla shipper and keeper, but because of its quality defects it is le planted than formerly. It is best employed as a cooking apple. The Baldwin also is inferior to many other offerings of the orchardist, but it retains a strong popular hold because of its combination of pa ably well-flavored flesh with highly colored skin and good keeping and shipping merits. It is a general purpose apple for both table and cooking. Its chief defect is a tendency to over-dryne ., The third name on the list—the Northern Spy—is usually considered the highest type of the Baldwin cla . It is large, handsomely colored, excellent both in flavor and flesh quality, and suitable alike for table and cooking. The Spitzenburg (Hsopus) is a similar fruit. Winesaps (for both table and cooking) are dark red, medium to large, and good keepers. Rhode Island Greenings (for both table and cooking) are large and generally green when gathered, but gradually change to a rich yellow. Rome Beauties (chiefly for cooking) are large and yellowish striped with red. Early Harvests (preferably for the table) are small or medium and pale yellow or greenish. The care of apples is simple but exact. They should be kept dry and cool—the colder the better, short of freezing—and all bruised or decaying fruits must be promptly removed. Otherwise the trouble will quickly spread to an alarming extent. Pacific states it is employed exclusively. The box most commonly used measures inside 9°4 imehes high, by 10°4 inches wide and about 2034 inches long, and holds about one bushel, or nearly fifty pounds of fruit, varying slightly aceording to the variety. When the box package is used, the fruits should be earefully graded to uniform size and packed in layers. Apple Storage. The bulk of the apples placed in cold-storage warehouses begin to conte into the market after the Christmas holidays, those first sent out being the le hardy varieties which will not keep for any great length of time. Some very choice kinds can be carried over until July, just reaching the season when early varieties of the new crop are ready. Apples are placed in the cold-storage rooms in the same barrels and boxes in which they are shipped from the grower, not even a barrel-head or box-lid being removed. The temperature is kept constantly at about 32° Fahr., and it is a pretty safe a ertion that any apples going into the warehouse in perfect condition will still be found so when displayed for sale on their re-appearance in the markets. Some varieties improve—become sweeter—with storage. The New England system of packing apples in sand is a fair substitute where cold storage is not available. A layer of dry sand is placed in the bottom of the barrel and on this a layer of apples—none of the apples, though, touching each other. Dry sand is then placed both between and over the fruit, the proce being continued until the barrel is full. Apples packed in this manner keep well, and if one or two in a layer happen to be affected the sand usually prevents the trouble from being communicated to the others.