PRESERVATION OF APPLES.

Globe, Volume XXIII, Issue 2248, 12 May 1881, Page 4

PRESERVATION OF APPLES.

A set of experiments made recently In Germany, by Sorauer, aro interesting, as hearing upon the question whether winter apples c;t:i best be kept in a dry or a damp cellar. Sorauer premises that while there is no longer any doubt in minds that light and warmth had better bo excluded in erdor that apples bo kept fresh and bo hindered from becoming ovor-ripe, there is otill a wide diversity of opinion as to whether damp or dry air is moat favorable for the preservation of the fruit. To test the question ho experimented upon several kinds of apples, particularly the winter golden pearmain, Throe separate lots of the apples having been weighed out, one lot was spread on shelves in on ordinary fruit cellar, another lot was kept in air from which moisture had been pretty thoroughly removed by moans of chemicals, and the third lot in air that wan completely saturated with moisture. On re-weighing the several lots after the lapse of some time, it was found that the apples kept in the air of the collar had lost three and a halt per cent of their weight; those kept in dry air almost eight per cent,; while those kept in air saturated with moiatura had lost but little more than one-half per cent. It could not bo perceived that any advantage was gained by using tho dry air. On the contrary, the applos kept in the dry air shrivelled more than tho others, and manifestly ripened more rapidly, so that in tho later months of the experiment they were less sweet than tho others, and a larger proportion of them decayed. Not a few of them became rottenripe, and this, in spito of tho fact that, as was naturally to be expected, rather less mouldincss appeared, os time went on, upon tho fruit kept in the dry air than upon that in the air which was saturated with moisture. Tho importance of hindering tho fruit from coming too quickly to full maturity was further illustrated in those experiments by the fact that tho first apples to decay wore those which wore ripest, that is to say, most mature, at tha beginning of tho experiments. It was found to bo true of apples when they wore kept upon shelves in the cellar that they gave off more water by evaporation in a given time when they woro green than they did afterwards as they became riper. It appeared also, rather remarkably, in a trial between apples whoso stems had been broken off, and those whose stems had been left uninjured, that the latter lost rather more by evaporation than tho former, tho inference being that there is no harm in breaking the stalks of apples in tho process of gathering. Other experiments wore made to determine how much inlluonoo the natural varnish on tho skin of opples has upon their preservation. To this ond, the waxy covering ■was removed from a number of apples by gently rubbing them with a mixture of alcohol and other, then washing them with very diluted potash lye and finally with much ■water. It wso found that apples thus treated lost fire per cent, more of their weight by evaporation in a given time than apples which had boon loft in their natural 'condition and similarly stored. As regards this point, Sorauer is in full accord with tho popular conviction that tho unhurt skin of an apple is to bo regarded as the chief protection against decay. Ho found that opples whose waxy coating had been loft nnharmed did not decay for a long timo after he had smeared them with mould, although they were loft all the while in a moist and warm place. Still other experiments woro made to tost the question whether there is any advantage in packing apples layer by layer with straw or sand. Four kinds of apples wore packed away in glass vessels, half of each lot in chopped straw and tho other half in dry sand. It .appeared not only that the sand was decidedly preferable to tho straw, but that tho uso of etraw is not to be commended. Although there was no loss through decay of the apples packed in the straw, they, nevertheless, shrivelled more than applos which were lying free in the cellar, and* they acquired a musty taste from the straw as it became damp. The use of dry sand, on the other hand, seemed to be adrontagoous, since the fruit packed in it retained an unoom 1 monly fresh appearance and excellent flavourarid promised to keep in good part until July. Tho sand-packed apples lost only about half as much water by evaporation as those which wore lying free upon the shelves ; they woro almost wholly froofrom mouldiness, and when one of them happened to decay it did not infect tho others. Even those apples which had been bruised did not decay any more rapidly than the sound fruit, provided that the skin had not been broken. Other apples were wrapped in tissue paper and compared with those loft uncovered, both in a dry chamber and in tho cellar. No advantage was derived from tho paper, excepting in the dry room, for in the cellar mould developed itself more rapidly upon tho apples wrapped in paper than on those which wore lying free. It seems plain that tha main points to be considered in storing apples are, to keep the temperature of tho room eo low that the fungi which cause decay cannot flourish, and to havo tho air of tho room moist enough to hinder tho fruit shrivelling. If tho storehouse were warm, moisture would doubtless bo injurious, since tho conditions would be favorable for the propagation of fungi; but if tho room bo cold enough to hold tho fungi in check, moisture will do good rather than harm.— “ Rural Now Yorker.”