If boxes are employed, one set may be filled while the wagon is at the storehouse unloading and loss of time will be avoided. In placing the celery in the boxes care must be taken that it is neatly packed with all roots in the bottom of the box. Upon reaching the storehouse the celery is removed from the wagon and placed in piles near where it is to be stored, or if in boxes these can be set near at hand. Beginning at the end of one of the divisions, a small furrow is opened in the soil by means of a spade, and the celery is set upright in this furrow, and the soil well firmed about the roots. The soil in the storehouse should be rather moist at the time the celery is brought in and it may be necessary to water a little from time to time by inserting the end of a hose between the plants and applying the water to the roots. After the storehouse is filled, constant ventilation should be maintained by means of openings near the ridge, and the temperature should be kept as nearly 36° F. as possible, care being taken, however, that the celery does not become frozen.

Cold Storage.-Celery may be kept in cold storage for several weeks, but storing in this manner is not profitable on a large scale owing to the space required to accommodate a comparatively small amount of the rough product. Celery that has been iced will not keep so well after its removal from the storage.

CHAPTER XIII

Marketing

THE general practice at present is to market the crop direct from the field where grown. In the North, the last of the crop may be held for a short time by trenching, but this portion is generally in the cars and on its way to market before freezing weather sets in. Very little of the northern product is available after December 15, and is followed by the California crop which supplies the market until that grown in Florida is ready for use. In this way the marketing period for celery begins about the first week in August, and continues until some time in April.

Methods of Preparing Celery for Market.-Two methods of shipping celery are in general use, the one termed "shipping in the rough," by which the outside leaves only are removed and the bunches shipped without washing, and the other by which the bunches are trimmed, washed, and tied in bundles of one dozen each before shipment. Celery packed in the rough will withstand long distance. shipment better than that which has been trimmed and washed, the outside leaves helping to keep the inner ones fresh and free from injury. The rough celery must be trimmed, washed, and bunched either by the commission merchant or the retail dealer, but in either case the celery reaches the customer in a comparatively fresh condition. For

handling early celery where the distances are not too great it is generally more satisfactory to trim. and wash the bunches, as the washing in cold water will freshen the stems and tend to keep them crisp and tender.

When marketing direct from the field without

washing the celery, if banked with earth, is lifted by means of spades or a digger, but if blanched with boards the plants are generally cut a little below the surface of the soil by means of short butcher knives. When ready for cutting the boards are loosened by removing the wire spanners or the wood cleats and the boards turned down along the

rows where they serve as walks for the cutters to work upon. The boards should be loosened only as fast as the celery is cut, or at most, but two or three rows ahead of the cutters. In cutting, the plant should be firmly grasped in one hand and the root severed by means of the knife held in the other.

FIG. 46-ROW OF BLANCHED CELERY READY FOR CUTTING

In this way, it is easy to detect any stalks that are hollow or pithy, and these are generally allowed to remain upon the ground. The cutters place the celery in convenient piles ready for the packers, who should follow close behind them. The method of packing is illustrated by Fig. 47.

Sizes and Styles of Shipping Crates.-The shipping crate in general use, except in Florida, is 24x24 inches in size and 20 inches deep, holding from four

to nine dozen, according to the size of the plants. The bottom of the crate is nearly tight, while the sides and top are quite open, as illustrated in Fig. 48. The top and a part of one side of the crate is left open until it is filled with celery. The packers are followed by the men who nail the crates, and the celery should then be promptly loaded upon

wagons and hauled direct to the car. As a rule the crates are marked before packing in order that no time may be lost in handling. When the shipping season is at its height, the large growers aim to have the celery in the car within two hours after being cut, and often loading several cars in a single day. On reaching the car the crates are carefully placed with small air spaces for ventilation, and packed in this manner the ordinary refrigerator car will hold from 160 to 165 crates.