Note 209 — Chapter III · COMMERCIAL PEACH-GROWING IN AMERICA

Wickson Cal. Fruits 450-456. 1914.

"Trays for Drying.—The fruit is placed upon trays for exposure to the sun. There is great variation in the size of the trays. The common small tray is made of one-half inch sugar-pine lumber two feet wide and three feet long, the boards forming it being held together by nailing to a cleat on each end, one by one and a quarter inches, and a lath or narrow piece of half-inch stuff is nailed over the ends of the boards, thus stiffening the tray and aiding to prevent warping.

A large tray which is used by some growers is four feet square, and is made of slats three-eighths of an inch thick, and one and a half inches wide, the slats being nailed to three cross slats three-eighths of an inch thick and three inches wide, and the ends nailed to a narrow strip one-half inch thick by three-quarters of an inch wide on the other side.

Since large drying yards have been supplied with tramways and trucks for moving the fruit instead of hand carriage, larger trays, three feet by six or three feet by eight, have been largely employed. These tramways lead from the cutting sheds to the sulphur boxes and thence to various parts of the large drying grounds, making it possible to handle large amounts of fruit at a minimum cost.

Protecting Fruit from Dew.—In the interior there are seldom any deposit of dew in the drying season but occasionally there are early rains before the drying season is over. The fruit is then protected by piling the trays one upon another, in which operation the thick cleats serve a good purpose. In dewy regions the trays are piled at night, or cloth or paper is sometimes stretched over the fruit, thus reducing the discoloration resulting from deposits of moisture upon it.

Drying Floors.—For the most part the trays are laid directly on the ground, but sometimes a staging of posts and rails is built to support them, about twenty inches from the ground. The drying trays are sometimes distributed through the orchard or vineyard, thus drying the fruit with as little carrying as possible. Others clear off a large space outside the plantation and spread the trays where full sunshine can be obtained. Drying spaces should be selected at a distance from traveled roads, to prevent the deposit of dust on the fruit * * *.

Grading.—It is of great advantage in drying to have all the fruit on a tray of approximately the same size, and grading before cutting is advisable. Machines are now made which accomplish this very cheaply and quickly.

Cutting-Sheds.—Shelter of some kind is always provided for the fruit-cutters. Sometimes it is only a temporary bower made of poles and beams upon which tree branches are spread as a thatch; sometimes open-side sheds with boarded roof, and sometimes a finished fruit-house is built, two stories high, the lower story opening with large doors on the north side, and with a large loft above, where the dried fruit can be sweated, packed, and stored for sale. The climate is such that almost any shelter which suits the taste of the purse of the producer will answer the purpose.

Sulphuring.—The regulations promulgated under the pure food law enacted by Congress in 1906 established an arbitrary limit to the percentage of sulphur compounds in evaporated fruits, which was shown by producers to be destructive to their industry, and otherwise unwarranted and unreasonable. As a result of their protest the enforcement of such regulations was indefinitely postponed, pending the results of scientific investigation which began in 1898.

From the point of view of the California producer it must be held that before the employment of the sulphur process, California cured fruits were suitable only to the lowest culinary uses. They were of undesirable color, devoid of natural flavor, offensive by content of insect life. They had no value which would induce production and discernible future. Placing the trays of freshly cut fruit in boxes or small 'houses,' with the fumes of burning sulphur, made it possible to preserve its natural color and flavor during the evaporation of its surplus moisture in the clear sunshine and dry air of the California summer. It also prevented souring, which with some fruits is otherwise not preventable in such open air drying, and it protected the fruit from insect attack during the drying process. By the use of sulphur and by no other agency has it been possible to lift the production of cured fruits of certain kinds from a low-value haphazard by-product to a primary product for which Californians have planted orchards, constructed packing houses and made a name in the world's markets.

The action of sulphuring is not alone to protect the fruit, it facilitates evaporation so that about one-half less time is required therefor. Not the least important bearing of this fact is the feasibility of curing fruits in larger pieces. The grand half-peaches, half-apricots, half-pears of the California cured fruits are the direct result of the sulphur process. Without it the fruit must be cut into small sections or ribbons, which in cooking break down into an uninviting mass, while, with the sulphuring, it is ordinary practice to produce the splendid halves with their natural color so preserved that they lie in cut glass dishes in suggestive semblance to the finest product of the canners, and are secured at a fraction of the cost.

There are various contrivances for the application of sulphur fumes to the freshly-cut fruit. Some are small for hand carriage of trays; some are large and the trays are wheeled into them upon trucks. The most common is a bottomless cabinet about five or six feet high, of a width equal to the length of the tray and a depth a little more than the width of the tray. The cabinet has a door the whole width of one side, and on the sides within cleats are nailed so that the trays of fruit slip in like drawers into a bureau. Some push in the trays so that the bottom one leaves a little space at the back, the next a little space at the front, and so on, that the fumes may be forced by the draft to pass between the trays back and forward. The essentials seem to be open holes or dampers in the bottom and top of the cabinet so that the fumes from the sulphur burning at the bottom may be thoroughly distributed through the interior, and then all openings are tightly closed. To secure a tight chamber the door has its edge felted and the cabinet is made of matched lumber. The sulphur is usually put on a shovel or iron pot, and it is ignited by a hot coal, or a hot iron, or it is thrown on paper of which the edges are set on fire, or a little alcohol is put on the sulphur and lighted, etc. The sulphur is usually burned in a pit in the ground under the cabinet. The application of sulphur must be watchfully and carefully made, and the exposure of the fruit should only be long enough to accomplish the end desired. The exposure required differs for different fruits, and with the same fruits in different conditions, and must be learned by experience.

Grading and Cleaning.—After the fruit is sufficiently dried (and it is impossible to describe how this point may be recognized except by the experienced touch), it is gathered from the trays in to large boxes and taken to the fruit house. Some growers put it into a revolving drum of punctured sheet iron, which rubs the pieces together and separates it from dust, etc., which falls out through the apertures as the drum revolves. Others empty the fruit upon a large wire-cloth table and pick it over, grading it according to size and color, and at the same time the dust and small particles of foreign matter fall through the wire cloth. The fanning mill for cleaning grain may also be used for rapid separation of dirt, leaves, etc., with proper arrangement of metal screens.

Sweating.—All fruit, if stored in mass after drying, becomes moist. This action should take place before packing. To facilitate it, the fruit is put in piles on the floor of the fruit house and turned occasionally with a scoop shovel; or, if allowed to sweat in boxes, the fruit is occasionally poured from one box to another. The sweating equalizes the moisture throughout the mass. Some large producers have sweat-rooms with tight walls, which preserve an even temperature. No fruit should be packed before 'going through the sweat.' If this is not done, discoloration and injury will result.

Dipping before Packing.—All fruits except prunes can be packed in good condition without dipping, provided the fruit is not over-dried. Efforts should be made to take up the fruit when it is just sufficiently cured to prevent subsequent fermentation. If taken from the trays in the heat of the day and covered so that the fruit moth can not reach it there is little danger of worms. The highest grades of fruit are made in this way. If, however, the fruit has been over-dried or neglected, it can be dipped in boiling water to kill eggs of vermin and to make the fruit a little more pliable for the press. The dipping should be done quickly, and the fruit allowed to drain and then lie in a dark room, carefully covered, for twenty-four hours before packing.

Packing.—To open well, packages of dried fruit should be 'faced.' The many fine arts of paper lining, etc., must be learned by observation. Flatten some fair specimens of the fruit to be packed (and reference is especially made to such fruits as apricots, peaches and nectarines) by running them through a clothes wringer or similar pair of rollers set to flatten but not crush the fruit. Do not face with better fruit than the package is to contain. It is a fraud which will not in the end be profitable. Lay the flattened fruit (cup side down) neatly in the bottom of the box. Fill the box until it reaches the amount the box is to contain, and then apply the press until the bottom can be nailed on. Invert the box and put on the label or brand; the bottom then becomes the top.

Many different kinds of boxes are used. A very good size is made of seasoned pine, six inches deep by nine inches wide by fifteen inches long, inside measurements, and it will hold twenty-five pounds of fruit. * * *

Peaches.—Take the fruit when it is fully ripe, but not mushy; cut cleanly all around to extract the pit and put on trays cup side up; get into the sulphur box as soon as possible after cutting. Peaches are dried both peeled and unpeeled, but drying without peeling is chiefly done. Peeling is done with the small paring machines or with a knife. Peeling with lye has been generally abandoned because of discoloration of the fruit after packing, although it can be successfully done by frequently changing the lye and using ample quantities of fresh water for rinsing after dipping.

Clingstone peaches are successfully handled with curved knives and spoon-shaped pitters in conjunction with ordinary fruit knives. Different styles are carried at the general stores in the fruit districts, and individuals differ widely in their preferences.

The weight of dried peaches which can be obtained from a certain weight of fresh fruit, depends upon the variety; some varieties yield at least a third more than others, and clings yield more than freestones as a rule. Dry-fleshed peaches, like the Muir, yield one pound dry from four or five pounds fresh, while other more juicy fruits may require six or seven pounds.

Nectarines.—Nectarines are handled like peaches; the production of translucent amber fruit in the sun depends upon the skillful use of sulphur."