After you have poured the dried products back and forth every day for three or four days as an additional precaution, reheat the dried fruit to 140 degrees just long enough—­about thirty minutes—­to allow the heat to penetrate throughout the product.

Two kinds of moths stand out prominently among insects that attack dried fruits and vegetables.  They are much more likely to get into the fruit during the process of drying than to find their way through boxes into the stored products.  This applies particularly to drying in the sun.  The Indian-meal moth is the most destructive of these insects.  It is about three-eighths of an inch long and has a cloaked appearance, one-third gray and the rest copper-brown.  The fig moth is about the same size, but dark, neutral gray.  A minute, flattened chocolate-brown beetle usually accompanies these moths and does considerable damage.  Both of the moths deposit their eggs on fruit when it is on the drying racks—­usually at dusk or after dark, for these insects are not fond of daylight.

It takes from three to ten days for the eggs to hatch into whitish or pinkish grublike caterpillars, and from five to ten weeks from the laying of the eggs before more moths appear to lay another lot of eggs.  A number of “broods” or generations are produced yearly, so if a few of these moth eggs are stored away on dried fruits or vegetables hundreds of caterpillars are produced and many pounds of valuable material may be destroyed during the winter if the products are stored in a warm room.  Dried fruits stored in warm, dark bins or in sacks offer especially favorable places for the development of these destructive moths.

It is evident that the larger the package, the greater the chance of a few eggs doing much damage.  Small cartons or containers confine the injury from these moths to small quantities of material; for if the containers are closed tightly the insects cannot easily escape from them and infest other packages which may not have been infested previously.

If you are drying by sun and the products are not thoroughly dry at night, finish the process on the stove.  If you desire to carry it over to the next day screen the drying racks early in the evening and fasten down the cheesecloth.  With these precautions and with proper storage, no danger ordinarily need be feared from these insects.  The additional precaution of heating the dried product to 140 degrees for thirty minutes sterilizes it if already infested.

Though not necessary, tin cans or glass jars make good receptacles for storage of dried fruits or vegetables.  Pasteboard boxes with tight covers, stout paper bags and patented paraffin paper cartons also afford ample protection for dried products when protected from insects and rodents.  The dried products must be protected from outside moisture, and will keep best in a cool, dry, well-ventilated place.  These conditions, however, are difficult to obtain in the more humid