CIDER MAKING.

Waikato Times, Volume XXVII, Issue 2191, 24 July 1886, Page 2 (Supplement)

CIDER MAKING.

YeoetXblb marrows,^vill grow.;|jnd prodgue! good ofcops on. almost »n;f 4 kirid of -soil, e?enwitn rough treatment; but, if wished for early in the season, they tihjiuld be grown in a. pit or frame under glass. I generally sow the seed in pots, and plant out at about the middle 1 of November, in well manured ' soil ; but a better plan, is to dig % trenoh. -from three to four feet wide and two feet deep, and fill this with half- rotten ntable litter jmd leaves, to form a gentle hot-bed. Onjthe top of thi* put nine inohes of good lioh soil ; the plant* may be put out at on je j but it is well to shade them for a few day« until they are welt established. If you have no plants ready seed may be sown ; in that case cover with a hand light or! an inverted flower pot, until the plants Appear above ground. In select ng varieties tq grow always choose )he smaller kinds, for they are more prolifio and better in quality than the large coarse, sorts, besides being less troublosome to cook. Marrows should always be jut while they are young, long before tl icy attain their full size, ftp, in addition to being more tender and of better fWo tr ? the plant will continue to bear until tut down by the winter frosts, whioh, it wo ild not do, irere" it, allowed to manure its , fruit. ' \ t r , i , , [

(Canterbury fcreat.) 1 We have previously alluded to this industry, and following on the visit of <ne of our staff to Mr WV Williams', mill or press-house at Rangiora, where cider las been made* for ode or two seasons on an extensive scaled return to 'it again. There can be no doubt but that cider forms at once one of the most cooling and palatable beverages for the summer months, and in harvest time the quant ty which is partaken of in some parts of England is really astonishing. In many districts the use of ale is now giving Way for this new intoxicant, and as it is admitted that a beverage is wanted to take the place of ale, so we are told by the advocates for abstinence from, intoxi - eating liquors, then cider or perry sepm well qualified to their place. It is ' not the intention of the writer, however, 'to pronounce any decided opinion on this queation, but as there is no doubt likely to spring up a demand for cider, as well m a moans being required for utilising the large crops of apples that are now being produced, some remarks apropos of the manufacture will not be out of place. It will not be within our province to refer now to orchard oulture or to enumerate the best places for growing traes and to single out any variety which might be thought best for the purpose. Further on, Mr Williams' opinion will be given on this point, and after all his experience and experiments, that 'opinion is entitled to a great deal of weight. When the fruit falls or is picked, it having been allowed to mellow — but not to over-ripen — it is taken .to the press house. The average price paid this season has been three farthings and a halfpenny per pound. A mixture of different kinds of fruit may be made, or one kind only may be used, but it is stated that the apple known as the Bitter Sweet, is reckoned the best single variety for producing the best tasting and the largest quantity of cider. The apples having been brought in, are ground into pom* mage by a cider mill, which is driven by hand. This is a somewhat simple machine. The fruit is placed into the top, which is shaped like a winnowing machine, and falling into a set of spiked rollers, it is broken up before it falls into the stone rollers, which latter completely 1 press out the apple into a pancake form, and with sufficient force to squeeze the pips also into pulp. The machine is neither difficult to work, or, we should think, very expensive to purchase. When the pulp is reduced to the greatest degree of fineness, it is conveyed to the press, which stands opposite the mill. The pommage is pressed between hair cloths, expressly made for the purpose, and having been placed in several layers, or in bags made, the whole is subjected to a severe pressure by two large screws upon a beam that soon cause the must or juice to flow out into the tub underneath. The must is, strained and drained into vats or cakes, whilst the pulp is throWta away, or it may be made to yield a weak liquor known as washings. Mr Williams for hhnself and friends had put through his press this season 24661bs of apples. The pressing out of three 3-bushel sacks of fruit produce sufficient must to fill a 30gallon cask. In a season with full work from 60 to 100 gallons of cider may be made in a clay, the press being driven by hand power, ana three men and a boy kept employed. A much larger quantity could of course be dealt with if a horse power or steam, engine Was attached to the machinery. No difficulty could be experienced in the manufacture of 15,000 or 20,000 bottles of drinkable ciblei 4 , either the still kind or the effervescing, sparkling variety, resembling champagne, in a season, and there cannot be any two opinions as to the large profit which the industry would return to a painstaking individual. The must havibg been placed in the casks, the whole art exposed to the open air in a shed, the boards of which are at least half an inch apart, to allow for a free circulation of the atmosphere. In a few days, according to the state of the temperature, the cider begins to ferment, whereupon it is drawn off into fresh casks, or racked as it is technically termed. The casks best for this purpose are those which have been made of well-seasoned oak. During the period of fermentation the greatest care has to be exercised in wratching, so as to obtain the proper colour, clearness and taste. If the process goes on too fast the cider becomes acid, and if fermenting proceeds too slowly it does not keep well. It is thought most advisable to rack the cider twice, if not ottener, otherwise the vinous fermentation may, by proceeding too far, result in acetous fermentation, when nothing but vinegar would be the outcome of the labour. It is eminently necessary in cleaning the casks, Mr Williams says, to keep the cider free from sediment and also from the scum and yeast produced. A supply of spare liquor has to be kept to fill up the casks. When fermentation ceases the casks are bunged up closely, and as a safe precaution it may be advisable to seal the cask with resin or wax. If the cider is strong, it should remain in the cask twelve or eighteen months before bottling, If however it is weak, it may be bottled off in nine months. Mr Williams 'uses no treacle or colouring matter which some makers prefer to do in order to bring up the colour. It may here be useful to note that the burning of a small quantity of sulphur in the casks intended for putting the cider away into for the purpose of aging it has the effect of preventing further fermentation. Newly burned charcoal may also have the same effect as that which its produces in the checking of fermentation in new wines. Perry may be made in a similar way to cider, and the pears used may be those which are least palatable for eating, and those that have the most red colour on them.

Soiling Crops. — A correspondent asks to be informed as to what soiling crops he can now put in for summer and autumn feed. As there is no time to lose about this, we may answer his question at once. The only crops that can now be sown with advantage for summer soiling are vetches, rape, and white mustard. We might perhaps add whin or gorse to this list, but it is getting quite late chough for that crop. For general usefulness as a summer crop, vetches probably excel all the other crops. The winter-sown vetch is ready to cut at least a fortnight sooner than the spring-sown variety, but the latter may be sown from February to August, so that from the time the winter retghea are finished, occasional crops of

the spring variety can be arranged to come in, »nd provide a continuous supply fjOf"*3grii<>nMfood throughout the entire; sutnmer late into the autumn. Green r«^iis^ihother admirable plant for soil* I ingnOr otherwise, as required. Tho eros ,rany*w sown now for consumption iif; July, or later for autumn and winter feeding. Frost has no effect on it. We have teen a field of- rape as green as leeks I afterjstanding the winter. The cultivation *«' precisely ths same as for turnips but many sow it broadcast. We do not know that you can now do better thisseason than take your chance with these two plants— vetches and rape. White mustard is a plant of six weeks' growth, but it is far less substantial as a feeder than either of the aforementioned, so you will do well not to depend over much on it. If things are arranged in proper season, there is no difficulty in any arable district of the United Kingdom in providing, a continual succession of green forage crops, available either for soiling or folding, from the middle of April to the end of , October, and even later. There are at least half a dozen crops suitable for this purpose, and if we add rape and thousand- headed cabbage to the list , they will girdle with ease the twelve months. In point of earliness they Will come as follows :— Winter rye, trifolium, Italian rye-grass, lucerne, vetches, and common clover. Gorse and prickly comfrey should perhaps be added. — Agricultural Gazette*