Lettuce growing in California . ondition. In harvesting it will be found most efficient to employ three men;one man cutting and two placing the heads in piles. During thespring when the weather is warm it is best to cut the lettuce early inthe morning while it is cool and place it in the shade during the heatof the day, unless it is possible to ship immediately. The crop shouldnever be cut when the heads are wet, as they will heat and quickly rot 3 The following calendar is applicable to the interior valleys of the state,and especially to central California. 13 when packed in that condition. T
Lettuce growing in California . ondition. In harvesting it will be found most efficient to employ three men;one man cutting and two placing the heads in piles. During thespring when the weather is warm it is best to cut the lettuce early inthe morning while it is cool and place it in the shade during the heatof the day, unless it is possible to ship immediately. The crop shouldnever be cut when the heads are wet, as they will heat and quickly rot 3 The following calendar is applicable to the interior valleys of the state,and especially to central California. 13 when packed in that condition. The field is generally gone over fromthree to five times during the cutting season, and the heads should becut at the base, using a knife having a blade ten to twelve inches inlength. After the crop has been harvested it should be handled verycarefully and sold as soon as possible. PACKING FOR SHIPMENTLettuce should always be packed for shipment in crates, especiallywhen disposal is to be made at a considerable distance from the. Fig. 9.—Lettuce packed in the field for local market or packing house. garden. There are three sizes of crates commonly used: the LosAngeles crate, which holds from three to five dozen and is twenty-four inches in length, eighteen inches in width and thirteen inches inheight; the pony crate, which holds two dozen heads of ordinary sizelettuce and is about one-half as large as the Los Angeles crate; andthe field crate, which is about twice as large as the Los Angeles andholds about eight dozen heads of ordinary size lettuce. The LosAngeles and pony crates are most commonly used for long-distanceshipments. After the lettuce is cut it is hauled directly to the packing housewhere it is sorted, trimmed and repacked. That which is to be shippeda considerable distance, and especially during warm weather, should 14 always be protected from the heat; a layer of chopped ice should beplaced between the bottom and the second layer of lettuce, and oneon the top la
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