Storage of apples in the winter in the cellar

Large, glossy apples sold in stores are repulsive in their appearance, taste, and price. It’s good to have your own garden. It’s nice to treat your family with fragrant delicious apples from the cellar on a cold winter day. If you know how to store apples in the cellar, they can stay fragrant and juicy until the next season.

Winter varieties of apples are best stored. They have a thicker skin that protects the fruit from drying out and pathogens. From above, the fruits are covered with a matte coating that preserves their freshness, so there is no need to remove it.

Collection rules

Long-term storage of apples in the cellar requires careful preparatory measures, which begin with the correct collection:

• before starting the collection, it is necessary to collect those that lie around the tree and put them in a separate basket – they will not withstand storage;
• even minor damage can lead to damage to the fruit, so you need to pick them carefully, turning around the stalk;
• you need to pick fruits with a stalk, then they will last longer;
• it is better to collect apples for storage with gloves so as not to wipe off the wax coating from them;
• plucked fruits are placed in a plastic bucket, previously lined with a soft cloth – it is even better to put them in wicker baskets;
• if the fruit has fallen or been damaged, it must be put in a separate bowl, since it will not be stored for a long time, it will begin to rot and lead to the rotting of others;
• you must first pick apples from the lower branches.

Harvest stages

It is important to harvest on time. If you delay in picking fruit, they will overripe. If you start harvesting too early, they will not have time to gain flavor. Winter varieties are harvested slightly unripe and firm.

There are different degrees of fruit ripeness. At the consumer level of maturity, apples acquire those external features that distinguish this variety – individual color, characteristic aroma, specific taste. The fruits easily break off the branch and fall to the ground, as the apples have already gained the necessary supply of nutrients. These include mainly summer varieties that are not stored for a long time. Collection of summer varieties can be carried out in the middle of summer.

The second phase of fruit picking begins at the end of summer. At this time, autumn varieties reach removable maturity. They must lie down for another 3-4 weeks to gain their taste. This is a level of maturity when the chemical composition of the fruit allows them to withstand a sufficient shelf life.

The main thing is not to miss the right moment to collect apples for storage. For this, the content of starch in them is determined. If there is a lot of it, then the cut of the fetus will turn blue from the action of iodine. So it’s not time for the harvest yet. If the pulp gave a yellow-white color, storage apples need to be quickly collected.

The season for collecting winter varieties begins in mid-September and continues until October.

Selection of fruits for storage

During storage, apples in the cellar ripen and become juicy and tasty. Apples for storage should be selected the same size so that they ripen evenly. Each variety should also have its own box, as they have different shelf life.

After picking apples for storage for two weeks, you need to put the crop in a cool place. Before laying the fruits in boxes, they must be sorted out and the defective ones separated. Selected apples for storage for the winter must meet the following requirements:

• they must not have a wormhole;
• there must be no dents, damage;
• the presence of the stalk will prevent the appearance of the fungus – no need to tear it off;
• no need to wipe the fruits and remove the wax coating;
• apples for storage need to be sorted by size.

Stacking apples for the winter

Boxes for storage of apples should be dry, made of strong but soft wood and clean. Sufficient capacity is 20 kg, too much mass will lead to overpressure. Instead of boxes, you can use cardboard boxes that are moisture resistant. If there are not many apples, you can wrap each one with paper so that they do not touch. With a large volume of fruits, they are more often sprinkled with clean and dry sawdust, dry hay or sand, moss.

It is important to properly place the fruits in boxes. They shouldn’t interfere with each other. You can stack apples for storage in a checkerboard pattern – this option will avoid damage to the stalk. If everything is done correctly, you can put boxes of apples for long-term storage.

Many gardeners prefer to store apples on racks in the cellar instead of boxes. Fruits are laid on them in one row so that they do not touch each other. You can lay two rows, shifting with thick cardboard.

Plastic bags are a convenient way to store apples. One and a half to two kilograms of fruit are packed in them and placed in the cellar for 6-7 hours so that they cool down to the temperature of the cellar. Next, the packages are tightly tied. The concentration of carbon dioxide in the bags gradually rises from the respiration of the fruits and after a week or two becomes sufficient to ensure long-term storage of apples. It can also be pre-loaded into packages using a siphon. A simple way to saturate the bag with carbon dioxide faster is to put a cotton swab moistened with vinegar or alcohol there.

Cellar preparation

Putting apples in the cellar for the winter is an excellent solution, as the cellar has ideal conditions in this regard. To ensure the storage of apples for the winter in the cellar, it should be prepared in advance:

• it is necessary to disinfect the room;
• carry out whitewashing of the walls;
• treat the floors with a solution of copper sulfate;
• you also need to check the waterproofing of walls and floors;
• floors in the cellar or basement do not need to be concreted;
• ensure adequate ventilation inside the cellar;
• it is also desirable to wipe storage boxes with a solution of soda ash;
• the ceiling height should be about two meters so that condensation does not accumulate – the optimum humidity should be 85-95%, it can be monitored with a hygrometer;
• room temperature from minus one degree to plus four – the most acceptable for storing apples;
• Approximately once every 10-12 days, apples must be inspected and those fruits that have begun to deteriorate should be removed.

Tips from experienced gardeners

Gardeners with many years of experience can share tips on how to store apples for the winter in the cellar in order to do without much crop loss.

1. Boxes with apples for storage are placed in a plastic bag and tied with twine on top. This technique helps to preserve moisture in the fruits – they remain juicy for a long time. Well passing carbon dioxide, polyethylene slows down oxygen. As a result, fruits ripen quickly, but do not dry out and are stored longer – about six months.
2. If the level of humidity in the room is low, then between the rows you can lay paper soaked in vegetable oil. This measure will prevent the fruit from drying out.

   

3. You can not store apples in the cellar next to vegetables, as they harm each other. If there are potatoes, garlic, or onions in the neighborhood, the apples can absorb an unpleasant odor and a starchy taste. And ethylene, which fruits release during storage, accelerates the germination of potatoes and cabbage.
4. Often, many gardeners, before placing apples in the cellar for the winter, process them before storage with ultraviolet light. A bactericidal lamp is installed from the fruit at a distance of up to one and a half meters and turned on for half an hour. This method of disinfection before storing apples for storage can reduce the processes of decay.
5. Some summer residents prefer to treat fruits with melted wax or wipe with glycerin before storage.

   

6. Sometimes fruits spoil due to being in uncleaned boxes, so it is advisable to steam them to prevent mold.

Other storage methods

There is a convenient way to store apples in the cellar, in which they will lie all winter as juicy and fresh as they were plucked from the tree. Fruits packed in plastic bags are tightly tied and placed in a half-meter pit. To scare away mice, the bags are surrounded on all sides with branches of spruce and juniper, and then covered with earth. The storage location is indicated by a stick or other mark.

Fruits are excellently stored in plastic bags, buried in the beds at a depth of about 20 cm. Sticks are tied to the bags tied with a rope, indicating the place where the package is laid. From above, the bed is covered with earth, tops, old foliage – the fruits perfectly retain their taste.

Storage of apples in the cellar can be done in the following way:

• after harvesting, they are laid out on the floor in a country house and spoiling fruits are rejected within two to three weeks;
• then they are transferred to plastic bags and tightly bandaged;

  

• until frost, the packages lie in a country house;
• when the room temperature drops to zero degrees, the bags are moved to a cellar or basement with good ventilation;
• in May, you can remove the fruit from the bags and put it in the refrigerator.

Wherever apples are stored, it is important to provide them with the right storage conditions. Then fragrant fruits will decorate the table throughout the winter, and delight with their appetizing appearance and taste.