Harvest and store apples

BRITISH apples are one of our best-loved fruits. Now we are hitting the time of year when we can help ourselves to our own crop – and celebrate this nutritious, crunchy and delicious snack.

Check commonground.org.uk for details on apple events across the country. There are tastings, stalls, cider making and experts on hand to help with identification.

Core value

If you have an apple tree at home you will already know that there is nothing better than a crisp, juicy apple plucked and eaten straight from the tree.

You may also have found that not every apple ripens at the same time.

Start by picking only the best, and give the others about a week before trying again.

Pick any that are stunted. They will never mature. Withered apples are either overripe or damaged.

Crunch time

Even if you have a small apple tree, you need to take care harvesting the crop. Make sure your ladders are firmly placed and branches can take your weight. Hand the apples down to someone else. Dropping them on to the ground will damage them, making them unsuitable for storing.

Ready to crumble

Apples ripen from the outside of the tree towards the centre, so the ones growing on the outside should be picked first.

Their colour can be anything from dark green and yellow to pink, orange and red, depending on the

Late cropping apples, such as cox’s orange pippin and egremont russet, store well. Simply wrap unwashed apples in newspaper then stack them in boxes and place them in a cool, dark, frost-free shed.

Take note that apples and potatoes should never be stored in the same room because as spuds age they release ethylene gas, which makes apples spoil faster.