Autumn is the time to harvest apples. The fruit should be picked taking into account the temperature and weather conditions. If September turns out to be quite cold, you should not wait for frosts that are destructive to the fruit - even unripe apples should be picked earlier.

Late varieties, although they are not afraid of the first frosts, may start to spoil due to frost. This will negatively affect the varieties of long-term storage, so the harvest should be approached with all responsibility. OBOZREVATEL publishes the best tips for harvesting different varieties of apples.

When apples ripen

Experienced gardeners divide apple varieties into three large categories:

1. Summer - ripe in August, unsuitable for long-term storage, so they should be consumed immediately. They are used to make juices, compotes, jams or dried for winter for soups.
2. Autumn - ripen in late August and September. Can be stored in a cool room for up to four months.
3. Winter - ripen in late September - early October. Suitable for long-term storage (under the right conditions - until spring). They acquire their flavor properties during storage.

How to tell if apples are ripe

There are a few signs to look out for.

Press the peel - if there is no indentation, the apple is not ripe. If a slight indentation remains, you can harvest.

Pay attention to external signs. Ripened apples are bright, have white or creamy flesh, without wormholes, the size corresponds to the variety.

And, of course, taste the apples for flavor. Ripe fruits have a rich, not too sour varietal flavor and are easy to cut into pieces.

You can conduct an experiment: in a container pour 1 liter of distilled water and add 4 g of potassium iodide. Cut the apple in half and immerse it in the solution. If the apple in the middle acquires a bluish color - it is unripe, it has too much starch. A yellow center and a slightly blue edge indicate the ripeness of the fruit. If there is no blue color at all, the fruit is overripe.

Rules for apple picking

It is better to pick apples at lunchtime, when the moisture from the night before has dried out.

Start from the south side of the tree, where the fruit ripens faster. First pick the apples from the ground, then pick them from the lower branches and only then pick them from the upper branches - this will reduce the number of fallen apples.

Pick the apples by putting your hand around them and pressing on the petiole with your index finger. It is best to put the fruit in wicker baskets. If there are no baskets, you can take buckets, having previously lined them with dense cloth or burlap. Put rotten fruits separately from healthy ones.

Earlier OBOZREVATEL told that in Ukraine can drastically change the price of apples.

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