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nafex - Re: [NAFEX] best apples article

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  • From: Ginda Fisher <list@ginda.us>
  • To: North American Fruit Explorers <nafex@lists.ibiblio.org>
  • Subject: Re: [NAFEX] best apples article
  • Date: Sun, 21 Oct 2007 12:45:33 -0400


On Oct 21, 2007, at 12:27 PM, William C. Garthright wrote:


Someone mentioned Honeycrisp as a good storage apple that keeps its
crunch- maybe in CO2 storage but not out of my cellar!


This is disappointing, because it's one of the varieties I planted, just
for that reason (and because I like the taste, at least in grocery store
apples). I've since discovered that it supposedly tastes best when there
are cool nights when it ripens, so maybe this was a bad pick for two
reasons.

I mentioned that I've had good luck storing Honeycrisp. I just tucked the box in the back of my fridge. Perhaps my fridge is cooler than that person's cellar? We sort of forgot about them, and then discovered them a couple of months later, and they were still crunchy and in good shape. Being from Macintosh country, I was really impressed.

Which brings up another question: what's the best way to store apples
over the winter? I don't have a root cellar. My basement is unfinished,
and a bit cooler (and damper) than the rest of the house, but not
extraordinarily so. I was thinking of buying another refrigerator
(perhaps an older, used one), just for fruit. Would they dry out too
badly there? Any suggestions? I've got at least a year to worry about
it. :-)

I'm pretty sure the "best" way is controlled atmosphere storage. That's probably not practical for you. . . If you can't do that, I think they do best very cool (nearly freezing) and damp. I've never tried it, but in prior years people who've grown apples in bags left them in the bags for storage, and said that had helped. (whether it kept mold out or moisture in ???) I bought a cheap used fridge from a friend that I mostly use for apples in the fall. It works surprisingly well. It probably helps that it doesn't defrost its (small) freezer area or have any other bells and whistles.

Ginda




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