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During the entire process of cutting, sorting, bunching, and packing great care must be exercised not to bruise or in any way injure the heads, as the gummy juice of these soon heats and spoils the whole. They should also be kept cool



and dry, else the moisture causes decay. Of course if, when cutting, the ground is wet, some of the soil will adhere to the lower ends of the stalks; this has to be rinsed off in clean water, but not by immersing the entire stalk. If the bunches are to be kept over night, before packing, the butts should be dipped in clean water and stood on end on a cold cellar bottom, or upon grass or hay that has been thoroughly wet; but the crowns, or the green portions of the sprouts, should never be sprinkled or wet. It is a common practice to set the bunches in shallow pans containing water, but this is apt to give a bitter taste to the stalks. Crates.--There is no standard shape or size of crates for shipping asparagus, and in the wholesale markets of New York City a great variety of styles is found. Of late ordinary twenty-four or thirty-two quart berry crates have come into favor with near by growers, as they are cheap, light, and easily handled. In these the bunches are laid down flat, in tiers, alternating the butt ends so that when the crates are full the top row is level with the cover. Some growers, of very fine asparagus even, use solid wooden boxes. Fig. 32 shows such a box containing three dozen bunches. A crate with the top a few inches narrower than the bottom has the advantage that it holds the bunches more firmly together than straight-sided boxes. Fig. 33 shows a crate containing two dozen bunches of green asparagus ready for shipment, with the exception of the slats to be nailed on the side. Fig. 34 shows the shape of the end pieces. These crates are made of various sizes, according to the length of the bunches. The crate here illustrated was 24 inches long, 12 inches high, 19 inches wide at the bottom, and 14-1/2 inches at the top, inside measurement. The end boards were 7/8 of an inch thick, and the slats about half an inch. In shipping to a distant market some thoroughly wet grass, or sphagnum moss, should be put in the bottom of the crate, the bunches stood on ends, butt down, and pressed so tightly together that they can not move or shift in handling. The crate should have a tight bottom and ends. The sides may be tight half way up, and the rest of the sides and the top should be slatted. This keeps the butts moist and the tops dry and cool.

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