Storing apples: how and where to store fresh fruits at home? Apple harvesting, pear harvesting, apple storage

There is no crop more popular among gardeners than apples. It’s rare that a garden doesn’t grow these bright and juicy fruits, rich in vitamins and microelements. It would seem that harvesting apples is a simple matter. But in order for the fruits to be stored longer, you need to properly harvest the apples and take into account a number of features. I'll tell you about them.

When to Harvest

It is customary to divide apple varieties into three groups:

• summer varieties;
• autumn varieties;
• winter varieties.

When it's time to harvest your apples depends on the variety of apples grown on your property. In addition, it also depends on your goals. Thus, the harvest of summer varieties is consumed immediately. Apple picking begins in mid-August, and their shelf life is low, no more than a month. Autumn varieties are harvested from late August - early September; the harvest can be stored for up to 4 months. True, by the end of the storage period the apple pulp becomes loose. Winter varieties are the most shelf-stable. They are collected from the end of September - mid-October; they are not suitable for food straight from the branch. The harvest of winter varieties ripens as they are stored and can be stored until spring.

How to determine the ripeness of apples

The indicated periods are very arbitrary. The ripeness of apples is affected by air temperature and humidity, tree care, and summer aridity. Therefore, it is necessary to be able to correctly determine the ripeness of apples. I'll teach you how to do it. If harvested early, the taste of the apples will deteriorate. If apples are left on the branches too long, they will taste mealy and the flesh will turn brown. There are several ways to determine the ripeness of apples:

• Carrion. If there are large apples among the fallen apples, the harvest is ripe.
• Press down on the apple with your thumb. If the dent disappears, the apples are not ripe. If the skin splits under your finger, you are late in harvesting. If the dent does not level out, start picking the fruit.
• Tasting. The ripe fruit is bright and even in color, without darkening on the skin. The pulp is light, sweet and sour. The seeds are dark brown.
• Chemical method. Prepare a solution of water, potassium iodide and iodine. Drop the solution onto the cut of the apple and observe the reaction for a couple of minutes. Iodine reacts with starch, which is abundant in unripe apples; the amount of starch decreases as they ripen. If the cut turns blue, the fruits are not ripe. A yellow cut indicates that the harvest has been over-exposed. Blue border of the cut with a yellow core - start harvesting.

There are specially prepared chemical kits on sale for conducting a test based on the latter option.

How to harvest

Any gardener knows how to properly harvest apples. The second half of the day is suitable for this work. Wait for warm sunny weather, without precipitation. It is important to follow this rule when collecting winter varieties. Start picking apples from the lower branches, gradually working your way up. To reach the apples growing on the upper branches, special devices will help, for example, a hook for bending branches or special design for collecting apples, similar to a net. On the southern side of the tree, apples will ripen faster by two to three days. Pick the apples carefully, including the stem, and try not to damage the tree branches. Remember that only healthy fruits are suitable for storage, without dents, damage or wormholes.

How to store the harvest

To preserve your apple harvest, prepare wooden boxes With ventilation holes. Treat them with a solution of potassium permanganate and dry thoroughly in the sun. Then place it on the bottom blank sheets paper. Place apples in boxes immediately after picking, without leaving them in the sun. The fruits should not be washed in order to leave the matte film intact, protecting them from rotting. Leave the boxes in a cool, ventilated area. Maintain the temperature to 5 degrees, do not allow freezing. Systematically sort through the apples and remove rotten and spoiled specimens.

I hope in this article I answered all questions about autumn harvest apple harvest. Have a bountiful harvest!

The Roman scientist Pliny the Elder back in the 3rd century. AD wrote: “...The blush of the apple transfers to the cheeks of the person who eats it.” In England there is a saying about the healing power of these fruits: “An apple a day keeps the doctor away.” In the first Polish encyclopedia “New Athens”, published in the mid-18th century, the author shared with readers a recipe for longevity: “To live a long life, like the patriarch Methuselah, who died in 969, you need to eat walnuts and apples."

Value apples h-z-2L in the human diet is very high, it is an essential food product. Apples serve as a preventative against many diseases, and also have a healing effect on the human body and stimulate work. internal organs and support immunity. They contain vitamins C, B1t B2, P, E, carotene, iron, potassium, manganese, calcium, sugars and organic acids.

Apples are a natural source of pectins, which are not digested in the stomach and are excreted naturally, “along the way” absorbing accumulated toxins. This is a kind of broom that gently cleanses the gastrointestinal tract.

The apple tree is one of the most ancient fruit trees, introduced into cultivation by humans more than 3-4 thousand years ago.

The apple tree is the main fruit crop, which ranks first in the total production of fruits and berries. It is distributed everywhere, in all regions of the country, regardless of their soil and climatic characteristics. The wide range of the culture is associated with its plasticity, the ability to adapt to different conditions growing, a wide variety of varieties different terms maturation, with various economically valuable characteristics.

The best varieties, both summer, autumn and winter, have high productivity, have increased winter hardiness compared to other fruit species, and are distinguished by marketability and consumer qualities of the fruit. Harvest the best varieties can be stored for a long time, preserving taste qualities and nutritional value, such fruits are suitable for fresh consumption and for different types processing - making juices, purees, jams, compotes, and also suitable for drying and freezing for the winter.

The assortment of apple trees is constantly updated with promising new products of domestic and foreign selection - high-yielding, winter-hardy, resistant to pests and diseases. Of course, when planting a garden, each gardener chooses varieties at his own discretion, but you still need to take into account the soil and climatic characteristics of the region - depending on them, varieties with a certain winter hardiness are selected (for example, more suitable for the southern or northern regions), as well as resistance to the main fungal diseases- in regions with high humidity, immune or highly resistant to scab and powdery mildew varieties. The early fruiting of trees, the regularity of fruiting, crown habitus and many other economic and biological indicators are very important.

In the collection and research plantings of our institution (in given time- Experimental station of pomology named after. L.P. Simirenko Institute of Horticulture of the National Academy of Sciences) - a huge number of varieties (both domestic and foreign selection) and hybrid forms of apple trees. We constantly study the needs of the market, the requests of gardeners, compare them with the characteristics of our “ward” varieties and create new products that, in terms of their economic properties, are more consistent with the requirements of modern agriculture.

Many samples taken from our gardens have been used for breeding. Over the past decade at the Experimental Station named after. L.P. Simirenko developed 11 new varieties of apple trees. They have already been included in the State Register of plant varieties suitable for distribution in Ukraine and recommended for cultivation in different soil-climatic zones.

WE OFFER CHARACTERISTICS OF THE BEST VARIETIES OF APPLE TREE.

The pearl of our selection is the Renet Simirenko variety. Its origin is unknown. Back in the 60-80s. In the 19th century, it was found in the Mlievsky Garden, and then propagated by Platon Fedorovich Simirenko. His son Lev Platonovich described this variety in 1880-1890, entered it into the catalog and named it in honor of his father - Renet Simirenko.

Late winter ripening variety. A tree of moderate vigor, with a spreading, wide-rounded, rather dense crown with drooping branches.

The fruits are medium-sized and large, weighing 150-200 g, round-conical, somewhat asymmetrical. The main color is green or light green, sometimes with a moderate reddish blush on a small part of the surface of the fruit, on the sunny side, and clearly visible large light subcutaneous dots, which, as the fruit ripens, acquire a light green or greenish-yellow color; with a faint oily bluish coating. The pulp is white with a greenish tint, dense, aromatic, juicy (tasting score 8.4-8.8 points). Fruiting begins on the M9 rootstock in the 2nd year after planting, and on a medium-sized rootstock - in the 3rd year. Removable ripeness of fruits occurs in late September - early October, consumer ripeness - in December. Stores in the refrigerator for 4-5 months.

Advantages: early pregnancy, high yield, drought resistance; the fruits do not fall off ahead of schedule, long-lasting, long-lasting, transportable, and distinguished by high taste.

Disadvantages: average winter hardiness, low resistance to fungal diseases, frequency of fruiting.

Widely used in breeding, it transmits early fruiting and keeping quality of fruits to the offspring.

Mlievchanka autumn- variety autumn term maturation. A tree of moderate growth vigor, with a compact, high, columnar, medium-dense crown and spur-type fruiting.

The fruits are large and very large, weight 170-225 g, one-dimensional flat-round-conical, slightly ribbed. The main color is light green, greenish-yellow when ripe, on most of the surface there is an intense blurry crimson blush, sometimes with stripes of a more intense color, with a bluish bloom, and many light gray, clearly visible subcutaneous dots. The skin is dense, smooth, slightly oily. The pulp is white, tender, aromatic, juicy, with an excellent sweet and sour taste (tasting score 8.4-8.6 points). Harvest and consumer ripeness occurs in early September. The apples remain in storage until January.

Advantages: early fruiting, high winter hardiness, high yield without pronounced periodicity, high taste of the fruit.

Disadvantages: average resistance to scab and powdery mildew, tendency to premature shedding of apples.

Fiery- a variety of early winter ripening. The tree is of medium vigor and vigorous, with a rounded, flat-rounded, drooping (weeping), somewhat dense crown at the age of full fruiting.

The fruits are medium-sized, weight 125-160 g, one-dimensional, conical. The main color is greenish-yellow, with gray, faintly visible subcutaneous dots and a thick bluish coating; on 2/3 of the surface of the fruit there is a blurred crimson-red blush. The skin is thin, smooth, shiny. The pulp is yellowish-white, dense, juicy, aromatic, with a pleasant sweet and sour taste (tasting score 7.8-8.3 points). Removable ripeness of the fruit occurs at the end of September. Stores in the refrigerator for 5-6 months.

Advantages: early fruiting, high yield, winter hardiness, resistance to powdery mildew.

Disadvantages: average susceptibility to scab, tendency of trees to be overloaded with harvest.

It is used in breeding as a carrier of early fruiting, regular and high yield.

Mavka– winter ripening variety. A tree of moderate growth vigor, with a compact round or wide oval, medium dense crown.

The fruits are medium-sized and large, weighing 145-170 g, fairly one-dimensional, elongated-conical. The main color is yellow-green, with an orange-red blurred blush on 1/3-1/2 of the surface, against which dark red streaks and light subcutaneous dots are clearly visible. The skin is medium thick, smooth, dry. The pulp is yellow with greenish veins, dense, brittle, medium-grained, very juicy, with a harmonious sweet and sour taste (tasting score 7.8-8.2 points). Removable ripeness of the fruit occurs at the end of September, consumer ripeness - in December. Stores in the refrigerator for 4-5 months. Transportability is high.

Advantages: early fruiting, high and regular yield, high resistance to powdery mildew, average resistance to scab, high taste of the fruit.

Disadvantages: has average winter hardiness, is affected by bark diseases, and is not resistant to brown spot.

It is used in breeding as a carrier of early fruiting and high regular yield.

Gorodishchenskoye- winter ripening variety. A tree of moderate growth vigor, with a flat-rounded, slightly thickened, somewhat drooping (hanging) crown.

The fruits are large, weight 150-180 g, one-dimensional, broadly rounded-conical, slightly ribbed. The main color is greenish-yellow, with an intense bright red blush over most of the fruit, with white round visible subcutaneous dots. The skin is dense, oily, smooth. The pulp is greenish-white or creamy, dense, fine-grained, juicy, with an excellent wine-sweet dessert taste (tasting score 8.4-8.6 points). Removable ripeness of fruits occurs in late September - early October, consumer ripeness - in December. Stored in the refrigerator until April-May. Transportability is high.

Advantages: early fruiting, high winter hardiness and tree productivity, average resistance to scab.

Disadvantages: not resistant to powdery mildew.

Anniversary MIS- winter ripening variety. The tree is low-growing, with a compact, high, medium-dense crown.

The fruits are large and very large, weight 160-205 g, fairly one-dimensional, round-conical, slightly flattened. The main color is yellow-green, with a moderate blurred dark pink blush on most of the fruit, inconspicuous small light subcutaneous dots and an intense bluish bloom. The skin is medium thick, dense, smooth, moderately oily. The pulp is yellowish-white, dense, brittle, fine-grained, juicy, aromatic, with a pleasant sweet and sour taste (tasting score 8.0-8.4 points). Removable ripeness of the fruit occurs at the end of September. Stores in the refrigerator for 6-7 months. Transportability is high.

Advantages: early fruiting, high resistance to scab and powdery mildew, high taste and marketable quality of the fruit.

Disadvantages: average winter hardiness.

It is used in breeding as a carrier of tree compactness and early fruiting.

DATES FOR HARVESTING APPLES - TABLE

Quite this year bountiful harvest apples But do you know how to pick it correctly so that the apples can be stored for a long time, while remaining tasty, juicy and aromatic? The timing of harvesting directly affects the taste and marketability of the fruit. You can neither delay nor rush!

Of course, keeping quality directly depends on the variety, but harvesting conditions can also affect this indicator. This is especially important if the crop needs to be sold in different time- for example, some of the fruits immediately after harvesting, and some after some time. For long-term storage, apples are collected on early stage ripening, when the fruits are still hard, the pulp and the main color of the skin are green, the outer color is not sufficiently developed, without specific signs of ripeness of the variety - blush, subcutaneous dots, bluish bloom. And in order to quickly sell apples on the market, they, on the contrary, are harvested at full ripeness, when the presentation and taste of the fruit are most fully revealed - in the best condition for a given variety.

After harvesting, the fruits of many varieties are affected by functional diseases that develop during storage. To prevent them, apples of different varieties are collected from different stages ripening, depending on the tolerance of a particular variety to certain diseases. Thus, varieties of apples whose fruits quickly overripe, are prone to browning of the flesh, and are affected by Jonathan's spot - are harvested as soon as they begin to ripen, at an early stage of removable ripeness. Varieties that are not resistant to sunburn, subcutaneous spotting, and wilting are at a late stage.

As a result of many years of research at the Pomology Experimental Station named after. L. P. Simirenko IS NAANU established the order and timing of harvesting apple fruits different varieties, grown in the soil and climatic conditions of the Right Bank Forest-Steppe. It has been established that each variety must be harvested at the degree of fruit ripeness that ensures their best quality and maximum shelf life (shelf life after picking). Research also takes into account the important indicator described above - the instability of different apple varieties to functional diseases that affect the marketability and keeping quality of apples (see Table 1).

In industrial horticulture all over the world, specialists are in great demand developing new, more advanced methods for determining optimal timing harvesting fruit crops.

The onset of optimal harvest ripeness is signaled by a number of marketable, organoleptic, meteorological and biochemical characteristics. Gardeners analyze a set of indicators, such as the size of the fruit, the appearance of the outer color typical for the variety, and good detachment of the stalk.

To determine the ripeness of apple fruits, you can use one of the simplest and most technical available ways- starch iodine test. Starch, when interacting with iodine, colors fruit tissues Blue colour. The greener the apple, the more starch it contains. As it ripens, during the process of hydrolysis, its amount decreases, and fully ripe fruits no longer contain starch.

For an iodine-starch test, prepare an aqueous solution of iodine (4 g of starch and 1 g of iodine per 1 liter of distilled water). The garden is divided into conditional small plots and at least 10 fruits of each variety are taken from each, collecting them from different trees and with different branches(lower and upper). An analysis is carried out immediately: each fruit, cut lengthwise with a sharp knife through the seed chamber, is immersed in an iodine solution. After a minute, the condition of the slices is assessed on a scale from one to five points.

Scale of iodine-starch test for apple ripeness (in points)

Starch iodine test scale

In Europe, horticultural consultants calculate the Streif index - the optimal harvest period for apples of different varieties. This indicator is derived from the following formula:

(Streiff index) = hardness (fruit (kg/cm2) / sugar content x starch content (%)

The main parameters necessary to determine the optimal harvest time:

• - fruit hardness, determined by penetrometer (kg/cm2);
• - sugar content in fruits, measured with a refractometer (%, Brix):
• - starch content in freshly picked fruits (reaction to IODINE. The result is analyzed using special test cards).

Table 1. Timing for harvesting apple fruits, taking into account their degree of ripeness and the susceptibility of varieties to functional diseases

STORING APPLES - METHODS AND REVIEWS ABOUT THEM

STORING APPLES

A RICH HARVEST REQUIRES CERTAIN KNOWLEDGE, SKILLS AND HARDWORK FROM GARDENERS, AND IT IS USUALLY NOT EASY TO ACHIEVE IT. HOWEVER, OBTAINING A GOOD HARVEST IS HALF THE WORK: YOU MUST BE ABLE TO KEEP IT

The keeping quality of fruits depends on a number of factors:

varieties (there are varieties that are beautiful only plucked from the branch: there are those that can lie long time without losing its taste);

agricultural cultivation techniques (doses and timing of fertilizer application, a set of chemical and other protective measures against diseases and pests, harvesting timing, i.e., the state of fruit maturity);

room temperature and humidity. in which apples are stored (perhaps this factor can be called almost the most important).

The deterioration of the quality of fruits and vegetables during storage can be caused by many reasons. These may include both infectious and physiological diseases.

INFECTIOUS DISEASES

Infectious diseases of fruits that appear during storage, in some cases are the result of infection in the garden, when they were hanging on a tree, in others they arise during transportation or directly during storage.

Depending on the pathogen (or cause), some diseases develop slowly or do not progress at all during storage, while others develop very quickly within an already infected fruit and easily spread to neighboring ones (through direct contact or through the air).

NON-COMMUNICABLE DISEASES

1. Filling, or glassiness of fruits, occurs in years with warm autumns, when the fruits are overripe. The skin and pulp become glassy, ​​then turn brown.
2. Freezing of fruits occurs with prolonged exposure to temperatures below -2 ‘C. When frozen, apples thaw gradually at a temperature of +2 ‘C and normal relative humidity air, after which they must be implemented as soon as possible.
3. Bitter pitting of fruits - slightly depressed, round, brown spots with a diameter of 2-5 mm appear on the surface of the fruit. The reason is an unbalanced diet (low calcium content in fruits, excess nitrogen, high doses of potassium and magnesium).

The most common and harmful infectious diseases during the storage period of apples are the following.

Fruit rot, or moniliosis, can develop both in the garden and during storage. The lesion begins with a small brown spot, which, growing extremely quickly, can cover the entire fruit in a few days. The pulp becomes brownish-brown, loose, and acquires a sweetish wine-like unpleasant taste.

On fruits infected in the garden, yellowish pads of fungal spores form, which are arranged in even concentric circles.

When fruits are infected during storage, sporulation on the surface of the fruit, as a rule, does not develop. The fetus quickly mummifies. The mummy of fruit rot on the surface is smooth, shiny, black with a bluish tint.

Bitter gleosporium rot, or anthracnose of apples, appears after harvesting the fruits, although their infection occurs in the garden. The pulp is bitter, sharply limited from healthy tissue.

Gray rot manifests itself in the form of gray rot of fruits with the formation of a gray fluffy coating of spores on them. Over time, numerous black sclerotia (compactions of the mycelium of the causative agent of the disease) form on rotten fruits. The infection can get on the fruits while still in the garden or during transportation, but the development of rot itself occurs during storage. Fungal spores spread easily through the air.

Below are other entries on the topic “Do-it-yourself cottage and garden”

On August 19, Orthodox Christians celebrate the Feast of the Transfiguration of the Lord, which is popularly called the Apple Savior. On this day, apples and other fruits of the new harvest are blessed in churches.

According to legend, until this day there is garden apples it is forbidden. In truth, this does not make sense, because in our area around this time the early varieties of apples ripen.

Basket - on a tree

Apples must be harvested on time. Harvesting too early threatens to significantly reduce the taste of the fruit, and delaying harvesting increases carrion, impairs the storage ability of apples and inhibits the formation of fruit buds of the future harvest.

Start by preparing containers and equipment. It is worth paying close attention to this, since apples are a delicate and perishable fruit, and the safety of the harvest depends on where it is freshly picked, even for the shortest time. For collecting apples, baskets or buckets lined with burlap are best suited so that the fruits do not come into direct contact with a hard surface and are less prone to damage and spoilage. It is also good to stock up on special wooden or metal hooks of medium diameter - they are needed to hang a basket or bucket on a thicker branch. Agree, it is more convenient and faster to harvest from a tree when the container is immediately at hand and you do not have to bend over to it - as would be the case if it stood on the ground.

You will, of course, also need a light and comfortable ladder and a fruit picker - to remove apples from the very top. Under no circumstances should you pick apples without ladders or by climbing a tree. The bark of apple trees is very delicate and easily damaged, and if you step on the branches even without shoes, you can damage it, and the slightest damage to the bark can cause disease for the tree.

Immediately prepare containers for storing apples - boxes with a capacity of about 18-25 kilograms. Before starting work, do not forget to thoroughly wash the containers and equipment and dry them in the sun.

Get to work when you see that healthy fruits, undamaged by pests and diseases, begin to fall without the slightest breeze or simply begin to easily separate from the branch. But under no circumstances should you shake the apples off the trees! This can only be done if you want to immediately eat the “rosy and plump” drink you like. After all, it will no longer be possible to store it.

Immature? Overripe?

So, white filling, early red, yellow arcade, early and Moscow pear, mantet, lungwort, papirovka - I, of course, did not list all the early varieties - have already collected juice and are ready to be removed from the tree as soon as possible.

8 Basic Rules for Apple Picking

1 It should begin with collecting carrion. It is not at all harmless, because in each of the fallen apples there may be a worm or caterpillar that will spread throughout the garden and make it sick. To avoid this, the carrion should be buried immediately.

2 Start picking apples from the lower branches, then from the middle of the crown and from the top. With this harvest, fewer apples fall to the ground.

3 The apples are removed along with the stalk, which is carefully separated from the branch (without the stalk the fruit will not be stored well). Grasp the apple with your fingers, pressing the index finger on the stalk at the place of its attachment to fruit branch, and, lifting it a little, separate it from the fruit. In this case, you cannot pull the apple down, unscrew it or tear it off the branch. This way you will break off the stalk and the fruit will not grow in this place soon.

4 Work in the mornings in dry weather. This rule especially applies to autumn and winter varieties - fruits collected in such conditions are stored much better.

5 Summer varieties apples intended for processing, transportation or short-term storage are harvested at the beginning of removable ripeness, that is, slightly unripe.

6 Early varieties become overripe in 2-3 days, and therefore it is advisable to harvest them selectively, depending on the degree of ripeness. As a rule, fruits ripen faster on the south side of trees or at the top.

7 Place only healthy and undamaged apples in the basket. Fruits with a wormhole, deformed or already fallen are collected separately.

8 It is better to harvest late varieties as late as possible, but before the fruit begins to fall off. The later you shoot, the better their quality will be. However, you need to have time to harvest before the onset of autumn frosts, since apples damaged by frost will not be stored.

And in the morning - to the cellar

The harvested fruits are carefully laid out from baskets and buckets into boxes prepared in advance and lined with paper. Handle fruits with particular care early varieties. In this case, each variety must be placed in containers and stored separately, taking into account the size of the apple and its degree of ripeness. Pour winter varieties in compliance with following rules: Place one hand under the bottom of the basket or bucket, and support the apples with the other so that they do not spill out of the inverted container. The container turned over in this way is lowered to the level of the fruits already poured, the hand is removed and the apples are gently poured into the box. You should not lay them out one at a time - this will cause them more damage.

The fruits placed in boxes are left in the shade to cool overnight. And early in the morning, when it’s cool, put the apples in the cellar - before the day’s heat penetrates there, this will help them be stored longer. Place the boxes one on top of the other in 6 to 10 rows at a distance of 20 cm from the wall. Place 5-6 cm thick slats or bricks under the lowest one so that the fruits can be ventilated from below. And do not put apples in the cellar for the winter along with potatoes or beets - the proximity of these vegetables will cause the apples to lose their taste.

Important

Apples and vegetables are well preserved if the boxes with them are placed in thick polyethylene bags. The free end of the bag with the box is then twisted and tied with twine. Polyethylene packaging allows carbon dioxide to pass through well, oxygen a little less, and almost no water vapor at all. A low-oxygen, high-carbon-dioxide environment will help your apples maintain their freshness and flavor much like their counterparts that are stored in special atmosphere-controlled facilities.

Experiments have shown that if apples are stored at home in plastic packaging for five months, they will practically not lose weight.

curious

Labeled apples

If you have apple trees in your garden that produce red fruits, you can prepare original gift. Choose an apple growing on the sunny side - already quite large, but not yet reddened.

From foil, cut out the initials of the person you are going to surprise and glue it to the apple. You can take not foil, but any paper that does not allow sunlight to pass through, for example black paper, in which photographic materials are packaged.

When it's time to harvest, you pick an apple from the branch, remove the foil - the initials will be clearly visible.

Canned apples

Cut the apples into slices, add granulated sugar (per 1 kg - 200 g), stir and wait until the juice begins to stand out. Place in a stainless steel pan, be sure to close the lid, put on the fire and bring to a boil, stirring occasionally. After 3-5 minutes of gentle boiling, fill the pre-prepared, sterilized jars, immediately roll them up and turn them upside down. You can add other fruits to apples - cranberries, plums, chokeberry... But before cooking, the rowan must be scalded with boiling water to soften it a little.

The time for apples to ripen is the most important time when you cannot miss a day. This is especially true for cleaning early ripening varieties: the slightest delay threatens serious losses.

Rejoicing in the abundant fruiting, prepare in advance for the moment of harvest:

• check the safety of equipment (baskets and devices for separating apples from branches);
• repair and test step ladders for stability;
• treat against pathogenic microorganisms and thoroughly ventilate the crop storage area.

Having done all this, you can calmly wait for the necessary ripeness of the vitamin fruits to arrive.

A few general cleaning principles

For long-term storage, apples should be collected following several basic rules.

• Always pick apples only in dry weather, after waiting for the morning dew to dry.
• Planning to transport harvested, pre-cool it to a temperature of 8–10° C. This way the fruits will endure transportation much easier.
• Pick apples immediately when they reach ripeness. In contrast to consumer ripeness, the fruit at this time has already stopped growing, but is still quite hard and contains more acids than sugar. It is during this period that the fruits are best processed, transported and removed for storage.
• The ripe fruit is aromatic and sweet, but if you pick it at this stage, the apple will very soon become dry and crumbly. The main difficulty in collecting early varieties is to manage the harvest before the onset of consumer ripeness, since it is achieved very quickly after harvesting, after about a week.
• Please note that the weather conditions of a particular season significantly affect the ripening time. The hotter and drier the weather, the earlier the fruits ripen. But cool summers push this event to a later time, so winter varieties may not ripen at all.
• The harvest is stored immediately after harvesting. It is important that the room temperature is in the range from 0 to +4 ° C and there is sufficiently high humidity (85–90%).

All varieties of apples are divided into three large groups: summer, autumn and winter. Each of them has its own characteristics and harvest dates.

When to Harvest Summer Varieties

Summer apples very quickly, compared to their later relatives, already by the end of July - beginning of August, acquire removable ripeness. Collected at this stage, they can be stored for about a month if placed in the refrigerator at a temperature of 0 to +3 ° C. After a couple of weeks, early varieties are only suitable for immediate fresh consumption or for processing.

Time to pick autumn apples

Autumn varieties begin to ripen in early or mid-September. It is by this time that they become truly sweet, fragrant and beautiful. If you want to harvest the crop for storage, then the fruits should be removed without waiting for consumer ripeness - unripe, and then allowed to gain the necessary sweetness in storage. After 2-3 weeks, the harvest will be quite suitable for consumption. In addition, autumn apples collected at the stage of removable ripeness can be stored for three months without problems.

Winter apples - for patient gardeners

Winter varieties are distinguished by the fact that they almost never reach consumer maturity on the tree. In order for them to become tasty and juicy, the fruits must lie in storage for more than one month. The average time for their collection is the end of September, and real ripeness occurs only after 2–3 months.

However, such apples have one undoubted advantage - very long term storage If all the rules are followed, they can delight you with their sweet and sour taste and bright aroma all winter long.

How to pick apples correctly

Their safety directly depends on how correctly you remove, for example, melba or antonovka. This is especially important for winter apples, which will remain in storage for many months.

• If you want the harvested apples to be stored well, do not water the apple tree while the fruit is ripening. For the same purpose, you should not get carried away with fertilizing.
• Always choose only nice days for cleaning. Fruits picked wet are much more likely to become diseased.
• Start with the lowest branches, gradually moving up. This way you can harvest without damaging the fruit.
• To begin with, pick apples from the south side of the tree, as they always ripen earlier there. The northern branches will require your attention a couple of days later.
• Pick the fruits very carefully, being careful not to damage the delicate skin. Also carefully place them in the prepared container, and do not throw them away under any circumstances.
• Be sure to leave the stem, as it preserves the apples better.
• Never wipe apples, as this removes their protective waxy coating.
• Do not store carefully picked and fallen fruits together. It is generally better not to store carrion, even winter varieties, but to process it immediately.

What is needed to preserve the harvest?

It is not at all difficult to enjoy the taste and aroma of summer for a long time, as well as regularly supply the body with vitamins, if you take the issue of storage responsibly and take note of a few useful rules.

• Use simple wooden boxes as containers, pre-treated with a solution of potassium permanganate and thoroughly dried in the sun.
• It’s better to lay it on the bottom thick paper, but you can get by with regular newspapers. Sometimes dry, pre-washed sand is used for these purposes.
• The collected fruits should not be stored on outdoors, even just for a short time. They must be put into storage immediately after collection.
• At high humidity air in the storage place containers with fluff lime in it. It will absorb all excess water from the air. In a room that is too dry, you can place buckets or boxes of wet sand. It must be watered periodically throughout the storage period as it dries out.
• Very important for the correct microclimate temperature regime. The air should not warm up above +5° C, but even small negative temperatures are also unacceptable.
• Late varieties can be laid out in boxes in several layers, but not too tightly, sprinkled with sawdust, onion peels, peat or other dry and bulk material. It is better to place summer and autumn apples in a low container in one layer, wrapping each fruit with a napkin or sheet of paper.
• It is necessary to regularly sort through the crop, removing diseased specimens that are a source of infection for their neighbors. The first time this should be done a couple of weeks after collection. It is during this period that all defects that you did not discover during cleaning will appear. In the future, the audit can be carried out less frequently, approximately once every 3-4 weeks.
• It would be best to store it separately different varieties and copies different sizes, since their keeping quality is always different.

The question of when to harvest apples confuses many gardeners. And not because the question is complicated, but because everything seems to be clear. In fact, especially for winter varieties, not everyone can pick the fruits on time. Firstly, few people know what signs determine the ripeness of apples. Secondly, the harvesting time by day and by month is also a mystery to some. What many people don't know?

How to determine the ripeness of apples

First, information for the uninitiated. Determining when to put apples away for storage only makes sense for summer and autumn varieties. This is because early and mid-early varieties can be eaten immediately, late varieties only after some time. The latter, even collected on time, still remain green; they need time to ripen. The ripeness of the first two can be determined with an accuracy of several days. By what signs?

Sign 1. The color of fully ripened fruits will never be green, unless this is due to selection characteristics. Autumn apples can still be somewhat greenish in color, summer apples - never, they are either yellow, or red, or almost white, or several colors at once.

Sign 2. Brown or dark brown seed color.

Sign 3. The fruits break off with a slight force; there is no need to pull them so that the branch bends.

Sign 4. A carrion of a color corresponding to the variety appeared on the ground, good quality, that is, not rotten or damaged by disease.

Sign 5. If you press on an apple and release it, but the dent remains, the fruit is ripe. If it disappears immediately, the fruit is still green, the skin is torn - it is overripe.

Apart from external signs, you can determine whether a fruit is ripe or not using a “laboratory” method in your kitchen. The apple is cut in half, dipped for a minute or two in a solution of water (1 liter) and potassium iodide with iodine (1 gram each). If the pulp has turned bluish throughout its entire thickness, it is too early to harvest. If blueness appears only near the skin, it’s time. More about harvest time.

When to pick apples depending on the variety

This does not mean the varietal name itself, for example, Antonovka or White filling, but the seasonality of the fruit: summer apple, autumn or winter. In this regard, the questions of when to harvest apples in principle and when to remove apples for storage are two different mutually exclusive questions.

Nobody puts summer varieties into storage, because even in the most favorable conditions Apples from the summer harvest last for a maximum of a month, and that’s only if you’re lucky. They are collected in late July - early August only for immediate consumption. The most popular of the early varieties are:
- "White filling"
- "Papering"
- "Candy"
- "Anise"
- “Grushovka Moskovskaya”
- “Red Early”
- "Melba"

Autumn varieties are removed from the tree towards the end of summer. They are more “universal”, suitable both for eating and for storing for not very long-term storage, for approximately up to 3 months. When kept for a long time, the dense pulp becomes loose and is more suitable for puree. At the beginning of autumn you can already try apples:
- "Streifling"
- “Autumn Joy”
- "Champion"
- “Glory to the winners”
- "Mac"
- “Zhigulevskoe”
- “Oryol striped”

Winter varieties for storing in storage are ideal varieties, and the question of when to pick apples for the winter is more than relevant. In this category external signs maturity does not “work”. To store them in a cellar or other place, apples are removed approximately in the first half of October, but before a significant cold snap begins and before carrion appears under the trees. Of the winter varieties that store well:
- "Antonovka"
- “Winter Lungwort”
- "Orlik"
- "Jonathan"
- "Simirenko"
- "Welsey"
- "Antey"
- "Aport"

In addition, winter varieties of apples are divided into 2 categories: those that are harvested a little earlier and those that are harvested last. Last of all, “Minskoe”, “Boyken”, “Zaslavskoe”, “Belarusian Senap” and “Idared” are removed. Regarding harvesting fruits for storage, it should be remembered that even if it is clear from day to day when to pick apples for the winter, one should not forget about the weather. Autumn harvesting work is carried out only in dry weather. In summer it is possible some time after the rain.

But these are all the “correct” rules. For winter varieties they are immutable. For autumn ones, they are desirable, if you have experience, they can be adjusted. For summer, this is more of a recommendation, since at the beginning of the season, when something is just appearing in the gardens, most people check the ripeness of the fruit by taste. And what is most correct, everyone decides for himself.

People usually read along with this article:

You can never predict what diseases of apple trees can negate all the gardener’s efforts. This is on the one hand. But on the other hand, the harvest will always be great if you care about health apple orchard take care in advance.

An apple tree without pests is an ideal apple tree. Well said, but how to achieve this ideality in practice. This may seem strange, but it is quite simple. First you need to deal with apple tree pests. How to do it? It's also very simple.

Treatment of apple trees in the spring against diseases and pests: what to spray, when and how.
The primary task of a responsible gardener is the preservation fruit trees. In this material we will talk about how, with what and when to treat apple trees in your garden against which diseases and pests.