In order to obtain the highest quality fruit, apples must be harvested at the proper stage of maturity. Once harvested, proper storage is necessary to maximize storage life.
When to Harvest | How to Know They are Ripe | Harvesting | Storing | More Information
When to Harvest
The harvest period for apples varies from cultivar to cultivar. Early cultivars, such as ‘Pristine’ or ‘Red Free,’ ripen in late summer, while ‘GoldRush,’ ‘Enterprise,’ and many heirlooms may not be ready until late October. Note that harvest time may vary by one or more weeks from year to year due to weather conditions during the growing season. Therefore, gardeners should base the harvest time on the maturity of the apples rather than a calendar date.
How to Know Apples are Ripe
There are several indicators of apple maturity. Mature apples are firm, crisp, juicy, well-colored, and have developed the characteristic flavor of the variety. The seeds will be brown and the fruit should release easily with a gentle upward twist.
Red color alone is not a reliable indicator of maturity. Red Delicious apples, for example, often turn red before the fruit is fully mature. Fruit harvested too early is astringent, sour, starchy, and poorly flavored. Apples harvested too late are soft and mushy. It is better to harvest early than late; an early harvested apple can ripen more once in storage, while an overripe apple will spoil quickly.
If you are uncertain if the apple is ripe, simply do a taste test. In general, all the apples on the tree are all at a similar stage of maturity. If the apple has its characteristic taste, start harvesting from the tree.
Harvesting Apples
When harvesting apples, pick and handle the fruit carefully to prevent unnecessary damage. Grasp the apple in the palm of your hand and roll the apple back to release the apple with the stem attached. Work hard to reduce bruising to apples by gently placing them in buckets to prevent damage from hitting the bucket or other apples, and avoid squeezing to prevent bruising from fingers. Bruised or damaged apples do not store well.
Avoid yanking apples from the tree. This can remove the stem from the fruit. Stemless fruit do not store as well. Yanking also easily pulls spurs from the tree, which will reduce yields in future years. If you harvest an apple and a leaf is still attached, you likely damaged the spur.
Apples collected from the ground should never be mixed with those harvested from the tree, as they can introduce contamination. Only collect fruit that is firm and ripe with no soft or decaying spots.
Sort through the apples during harvest. Remove and promptly use bruised or cut apples. Also, remove apples that exhibit insect and disease problems.
Separate the apples by size. Use the largest apples first, as they don't store as well as the smaller fruit.
Storing Apples
Once harvested and sorted, store the undamaged apples immediately. The temperature and relative humidity during storage are critical for maximum storage life. Optimum storage conditions for apples are between 32 adn 40°F and relative humidity between 90 and 95 percent. Apple cultivars, such as Red Delicious, stored under optimum conditions, may be stored for up to 3 to 5 months. Apples stored at a temperature of 50°F will spoil two to three times faster than those stored at 32°F. If the humidity during storage is low, apples will dehydrate and shrivel.
Sort out any apples with blemishes or insect damage and use them first, as they will not store well. After blemishes are cut out, the apples can be used immediately for cider, sauce, or baking. Fruit with injury put off a plant hormone gas called ethylene, which can cause other sensitive fruit (not just apples) to ripen quickly. It is true that one bad apple ruins the bunch!
Small quantities of apples may be placed in perforated plastic bags and stored in the refrigerator. Perforated plastic bags maintain a high relative humidity while preventing the accumulation of excess moisture inside the bags.
Large quantities of apples can be stored in a second refrigerator, cellar, unheated outbuilding, or garage. Place the apples in perforated plastic bags or plastic-lined boxes/crates. Apples should be moved from unheated outbuildings and garages prior to extremely cold weather, as storage temperatures will likely drop well below freezing. Apples will freeze when temperatures drop below 30°F. Frozen apples deteriorate rapidly once thawed.
If you have more apples than can be properly stored, the surplus can be dried, frozen, or canned.
More Information
- Harvesting and Storing Tree Fruit
- Apple Varieties and Their Uses
- How can I identify the apple tree variety in my backyard?
- Should apples be removed from newly planted fruit tree?
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