—Lancaster Farming, Saturday, Jan. 25. 1975 40 Cranberry Facts and Picture yourself living in 1773 in the township of Cape Cod. Some guests are ex pected for dinner and you’ve decided to pick wild cran berries to garnish the turkey and fill a pie. You'd better check the date first, though, because picking cranberries before the 20th of September could result in a $1 fine and confiscation of the cran berries. This old law probably stems from the fact that if cranberries are picked too early, they won’t ripen. Other cranberry-growing areas had similar laws. New Jersey in 1789 prohibited picking cranberries before October 10th. An old Wisconsin law provided a $5O fine for picking or havmg in one’s possession unripe cranberries before Sep tember 20. The cranberry plant is a native of swamp areas or bogs and can survive un derwater for long periods. During the winter the growers flood the bog area with water to protect the vines from the cold. Around Labor Day, the bogs turn a vivid red and the berry is ready for harvest. Many cranberry growers wet-harvest their crop. They BYLERS DIESEL and REFRIGERATION SHOP . DISTRIBUTOR LISTER PENNSYLVANIA MOTOR OIL SALES and SERVICE GIRTON BULK MILK COOLERS Automatic Diesel Engine or Electric Operation- Equipment P.T.O. or Diesel Drive Stand-by Alternators. In Stock 20 - 7-16” thick steel tanks 1690 gals, can be used for air pressure WE INSTALL COMPLETE MILK COOLING EQUIPMENT IN SUGAR VALLEY, BRUSH VALLEY A FRANKLIN COUNTY DANIEL H. BYLER STAR ROUTE 655 BELLEVILLE, PA 17004 -rf# FARMERS AND DEALERS PLAN NOW TO ATTEND OUR CONSIGNMENT SALE ON FEB. 8, 1975 If you have any items, large or small for sale, we are now receiving consignments. BINKLEY & HURST BROS. A FARM & UTILITY EQUIP. Phone 626-4705 Lilitz R.D.4, Pa. Rothsville Station Road flood the bogs again and the berries arc harvested with a machine that stirs up the water and knocks the berries from the vines. The berries float to the surface and field workers round them up and push them to shore with long boards. The berries are then taken to a packing plant where they are cleaned and given the bounce test. Cranberries have a unique charac teristic: good berries bounce, bad ones don’t. This characteristic was first noted by an early New Jersey grower, John I. Webb, nicknamed Peg-leg John. He stored his berries in barrels in the loft of his bam. He couldn’t carry them down, so he poured them down the steps. He noticed that only sound firm fruits bounced,to the bottom; rotten and bruised berries remained on the steps. Today, we have a cranberry separator that is based on this principle. At the packing or processing plant, each berry is given seven chances to bounce over a 4-inch barrier. After the bounce test, the berries are sent to a screening table, where trained workers remove Folklore imperfect berries. The good berries are cleaned and sent for immediate packing or processing or arc frozen for later use. To help processors and packers prepare good quality products, the U.S. Department of Agriculture has grade standards for canned cranberry sauce, and for fresh and frozen cran berries. USDA also provides voluntary grading services for a fee to producers, buyers, and shippers who wish to have the quality of their product certified. Top quality for canned cranberry sauce is U.S. Grade A or Fancy. Grade A sauce has good color, con sistency, texture, and flavor. Lower grade sauces are good and are often a thrifty buy, but their appearance is not as uniform as Grade A. A top quality jellied sauce is tender but firm enough to hold its form. To meet USDA requirements for top quality, fresh cranberries must be clean, mature and firm, and free from damage. Fresh cranberries are usually packaged m one-pound film bags or in boxes with win dows. Since quality grades are not usually marked on the package, look for plumpness, good color, and uniformity in size. Crushed berries and those that are leaky and sticky may be off flavor. There are three grades (U.S. Grade A or Fancy, B, and C) for frozen cran berries but, as is the case with fresh cranberries, the quality grades are not usually marked on the packages. You can check frozen cranberries in much the same manner as fresh; they are packaged in the same way. Look for freedom from defects, plumpness, good color, and uniformity in size. Remember that frozen cranberries must be prepared in the same manner as fresh berries. When cranberries are frozen, they are not processed or packed with sugar, (from: Consumer Pood News) TRY A CLASSIFIED AD! Economics Of Pasture Fertilization are Studied Production economics of several different types of pastures, with and without nitrogen fertilization and legumes, will be sum marized at Livestock day, March 4, at Penn State University. According to Dr. J. B. Washko, Professor of Agronomy and Dr. L. L. Wilson Professor of Animal Science, Kentucky bluegrass pastures and orchardgrass pastures furnished essen tially the same number of cow grazing days per acre in 1974. 'flie average for the two types of grass pastures was 157 days of grazing for a cow calf unit These pastures were fertilized with only one 50-pound application of nitrogen per acre in early spring. Calcium, magnesium, phosphate, and potassium were applied in the fall or spring in ac cordance with soil test results. The pastures were dipped after each grazing for removal of unpalatable growth and for better weed control. Stocking rate was 1.5 acres per cow and calf during the flush grass growth period until July 1, and 1.7 acres per cpw-calf unit for the* remainder of the grazing! It was once believed that seeds from trees fell into small crevices on an alliga tor’s scales, and took root so that he resembles a small island! LET US FILL FARM TIRE Other sizes Available BARBED WIRE 4 Pt. lowa Type *29’” ssis32-°° BALER TWINE STOP IN OR CALL LARRY - PARTS DEPT. WENGER’S FARM MACHINERY season. All cows were Angus-Holstein crossbreds. liCgume-grass mixtures were somewhat less productive than the nitrogen fertilized grasses, furnishing 130 grazing days per acre. Dr. Washko attributed the similar production of the Kentucky bluegrass and orchardgrass pastures to the lack of moisture, par ticularly during July and August and the level of nitrogen fertilizer used. In other years, with more adequate rainfall, and higher nitrogen fertilization, orchardgrass and the legume-grass mixtures were usually more productive than was the bluegrass pasture. In another trial, two 50- pound nitrogen applications per acre to orchardgrass pastures furnished 196 days of grazing. Only 133 days of POLE STRUCTURES • FARM • URBAN • COMMERCIAL Thrive Center ENVIRONMENTAL BUILDINGS • Gestation • Farrowing • Nursery/ Finishing For Information Write or Phone EGG & POULTRY PRODUCERS!!! ARE MICE AND RATS DAMAGING CONVEYOR BELTS & FEED?? , J. C. EHRLICH CO., INC. PEST CONTROL 1278 LOOP ROAD LANCASTER, PA. 397-3721 Will Give You A FREE Estimate For Control and Monthly Preventive Service. REAR TRACTOR TIRES 16.9x30-6 ply 18.4x30-6 ply 18.4x34-6 ply or 8 ply 13.6x38-6 ply 15.5x38-6 ply FRONT TRACTOR TIRES 600 x 16-4 ply 3nb 11.00x16-8 ply IMPLEMENT TIRES 9.5 L x 15 - 6 ply 9.5Lx15-Bpty 11 Lx 15-6 ply 11 Lxls-Bply Front South Race St. grazing were obtained where one 50-pound nitrogen ap plication was made in early spring. According to Washko and Wilson, this additional 63 days of grazing was produced at a cost for nitrogen of approximately 19 cents per day. Therefore, the additional 50 pounds of nitrogen to the orchardgrass pasture produced feed nutrients from pasture at a reasonable cost, even with the relatively high cost of nitrogen compared to previous years. These trials were conducted at the State Correctional Institution at Rockview, Bellefonte, Pa. Some of the pastures have been in production for over 12 years indicating that pasture establishment cost should be pro-rated over at least 10 years, and perhaps 15 years, if the pastures are managed properly. YOUR NEEDS & Rear Tractor 626-5204 $160.00. $240.00 $266.00 $165.00 $187.00 $ 20.00 $lOO.OO $ 35.00 $ 40.00 $ 40.00 $ 45.00 Tires
Significant historical Pennsylvania newspapers