Storing apples: five rules to keep in mind

Created: 09/15/2022, 16:00

By: Anna Katharina Kusters

Proper storage of the fruit is crucial so that gardeners can still benefit from their apple harvest from the garden in winter.

In October it is time for the apple harvest.

While some early varieties can be harvested as early as August, most are ripe by October.

If you then have more apples in the basket than you can and want to eat in the next few days, you can keep the fruit for several weeks with clever storage.

In this way, it is possible to draw on the apple harvest in some cases as late as December.

Storing apples: This is how apples stay fresh for several weeks

The ideal storage area keeps the apples at a distance from each other.

© Mint Images/Imago

Apple storage is easy.

Garden lovers should keep these points in mind:

• 1. Store in a cool place

• 2. Store in the dark

• 3. Pay attention to high humidity in the room

• 4. Store at a distance

• 5. Store away from other vegetables

According to the

, the perfect room temperature for storing apples is around four degrees Celsius.

This temperature is given either in the vegetable compartment of the refrigerator or in a dark, spacious cellar.

If the harvest is a little smaller, gardeners can put the fruit in the fridge.

However, if the harvest yield is several kilograms, storage in the cellar is recommended.

At a low temperature, the apples do not ripen as quickly and remain edible for longer.

The brightness in the storage room also plays a decisive role.

Direct sunlight or permanent incidence of light in the room promote the ripening process.

In the end, apple lovers have much less of their harvest yields.

Anyone who puts their apples on the balcony due to cool temperatures or the lack of a storage cellar should keep the light exposure particularly low.

Storing apples: Pay attention to humidity and keep your distance

With a big apple harvest, gardeners can easily decide which apples to eat first.

Those with bruises should be eaten first or processed into apple juice because they are not suitable for long-term storage.

They rot quickly on the dented or open areas of the skin and the mold often spreads to the other apples.

Gardeners should also not stack the apples on top of each other, but give each apple enough space to avoid bruises.

They are best stored on boards or newspaper, with sufficient distance to other apples and the stem of the fruit turned downwards.

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High humidity in the room is also important.

The cellar room should not have a room climate that is too dry, otherwise the fruit will shrivel according to the

.

To prevent this, the apple forms a layer of wax on the skin - a good breeding ground for mould.

If you don't have enough space to store the apples individually, you can pack them in plastic bags.

With a few small holes, the bag offers a good climate and excess water can escape.

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Storing apples: Avoid contact with other vegetables and choose the right apple varieties

During the ripening process of the apples, the fruits give off the ripening gas ethylene.

That in itself is not harmful.

However, if the apples are stored next to other vegetables, the gas will cause them to ripen and rot quickly.

According to

, only mushrooms, leeks and leafy vegetables are insensitive to ethylene.

Not all apple varieties can be stored without problems.

Gardeners are most successful when they try the following varieties:

• Berlepsch

• boskoop

• Braeburn

• Elstar

• Gala

• Jonagold

• Idared

• Pinova

• rubinets 

• topaz

• White winter bell apple

• Landsberger Rennette

The white winterbell apple and the Landsberger Renette also need their time to ripen properly.

Gardeners can already harvest them in October.

But you have to store them until about January.

Then the fruits have developed their full aroma.