At Museo della Frutta in Turin, Italy, the pomological collection by Francesco Garnier Valletti consists of thousands of varieties of apples, pears, peaches, apricots, plums, grapes…and oranges. Pomology is the study and cultivation of fruit. The museum not only has a couple of pomological collection rooms, but also reconstructions of the analysis laboratories where Valletti conducted his experiments. The above photograph is one such procedure from the 1930s, specifically the impact of refrigeration on oranges.
The first row shows the beginning stage of an orange in the fridge, while the bottom row is the final stage. Oranges are tropical fruits, which means they never were meant to stay in a cold environment. So if you put an orange in the fridge, they easily get damaged, or in human terms, they get sick. So if you’ve learned anything, please don’t put your oranges in the fridge…oh, and try to visit a museum or two if you can. Have a nice day!
