Post by braided-rug on Nov 24, 2006 10:47:36 GMT 10
"The prune harvest in the 1930s, going barefoot on the dry prunes
The prune harvest was a busy time in the orchards of Los Altos in the 1930s, and it's an experience Ruth Erichsen will never forget. This is Part Two of an interview with Mrs. Erichsen in l997.
My grandfather Stevens had a farm and orchard in Mountain View. He raised mostly prunes. There was a big area out by the barn that was kept open and cleared, the dry yard. You would pick the prunes, then dip them, and then you would need some place to dry them. They had to be spread out in the sun. This was before dehydrators came along.
The picked prunes were in 40-pound boxes that got loaded on a raised platform. On it was a tub that looked like a large bathtub. It was quite high off the ground. A wood fire underneath heated the gallons and gallons of water. Above the water was a wire basket that could hold 40 pounds of prunes.
The basket was dipped down into the boiling water. The water had lye in it, and the skin of the prune would split. They'd slosh the prunes up and down just a little bit until they were split perfectly. You had to split the prunes so the moisture would evaporate while they dried. You didn't take the skin off, and you had to be careful not to heat them too long - just to get a little split on them.
They'd pull this lever all the way down, the basket would turn, and the prunes would slide and plop out of the tub onto trays. Then the trays of split prunes were spread out flat on the ground, the dry yard. There were trays and trays of prunes drying on the ground. What a sight!
When the prunes were dry, they would be taken into my grandfather's lovely big barn. They would dump the prunes in the corner in a big mound. My brother and I played on the prunes every once in a while. It was fun to go barefoot on those dry prunes before they got put into burlap sacks. My grandfather would sew the burlap sacks himself. I still have a needle that he used to sew. It is a big, long thin thing, a wicked needle!
I don't know how the prunes were transported for sale to the Prune & Apricot Association in San Jose. My grandfather did have a horse, so maybe he took the sacks of prunes down to San Jose on the wagon. The Association took care of things then.
They didn't pit the prunes then. You never thought of pitting prunes in those days. You'd buy them with the pits still in. That's the way I still buy them today. Be sure to tell everyone that prunes have a better flavor if the pit is still in them. "
From: www.latc.com/1999/10/27/community/communit14.html
The prune harvest was a busy time in the orchards of Los Altos in the 1930s, and it's an experience Ruth Erichsen will never forget. This is Part Two of an interview with Mrs. Erichsen in l997.
My grandfather Stevens had a farm and orchard in Mountain View. He raised mostly prunes. There was a big area out by the barn that was kept open and cleared, the dry yard. You would pick the prunes, then dip them, and then you would need some place to dry them. They had to be spread out in the sun. This was before dehydrators came along.
The picked prunes were in 40-pound boxes that got loaded on a raised platform. On it was a tub that looked like a large bathtub. It was quite high off the ground. A wood fire underneath heated the gallons and gallons of water. Above the water was a wire basket that could hold 40 pounds of prunes.
The basket was dipped down into the boiling water. The water had lye in it, and the skin of the prune would split. They'd slosh the prunes up and down just a little bit until they were split perfectly. You had to split the prunes so the moisture would evaporate while they dried. You didn't take the skin off, and you had to be careful not to heat them too long - just to get a little split on them.
They'd pull this lever all the way down, the basket would turn, and the prunes would slide and plop out of the tub onto trays. Then the trays of split prunes were spread out flat on the ground, the dry yard. There were trays and trays of prunes drying on the ground. What a sight!
When the prunes were dry, they would be taken into my grandfather's lovely big barn. They would dump the prunes in the corner in a big mound. My brother and I played on the prunes every once in a while. It was fun to go barefoot on those dry prunes before they got put into burlap sacks. My grandfather would sew the burlap sacks himself. I still have a needle that he used to sew. It is a big, long thin thing, a wicked needle!
I don't know how the prunes were transported for sale to the Prune & Apricot Association in San Jose. My grandfather did have a horse, so maybe he took the sacks of prunes down to San Jose on the wagon. The Association took care of things then.
They didn't pit the prunes then. You never thought of pitting prunes in those days. You'd buy them with the pits still in. That's the way I still buy them today. Be sure to tell everyone that prunes have a better flavor if the pit is still in them. "
From: www.latc.com/1999/10/27/community/communit14.html