Recommendations and ways to store apples on the balcony in autumn and winter
Private home owners keep their apple harvest in a cool cellar or garage. But what about those who live in a multi-storey apartment building?
Applying in practice the recommendations on how to store apples on the balcony in autumn and winter, at what temperature, you can enjoy these juicy, aromatic, healthy fruits for as long as possible.
Content
Is it possible, in what cases?
The first thing to remember is that only winter varieties of apples (for example Calvil or Rosemary) are suitable for storage on the balcony. The fruits are distinguished by a thickened skin covered with an even natural waxy bloom.
Subject to certain conditions, winter varieties preserve perfectly:
- taste,
- juiciness,
- fragrance for five to eight months after harvest.
Autumn varieties are stored for a short time (no more than two months). When harvesting apples of summer varieties, it is necessary to think in advance how to process it (apples are stored for no more than two weeks).
Only sorted fruits are suitable for storage. Fruits must be whole, without any signs of decay, uniform color and density. Apples are also sorted by size. Small fruits are sorted out for storage in a separate box (they spoil faster).
You will find all the most important things about keeping apples here.
At what temperature, humidity and other storage conditions?
It will be possible to save fruit if the following conditions are met:
- temperature regime from + ° 1C and above;
- air humidity not lower than 85%;
- using only closed containers (under the influence of sunlight, fruits begin to deteriorate faster);
- away from other fruits and vegetables.
About the temperature at which apples can be stored at home in winter, read in article.
If the loggia is insulated, glazed
The ideal option for storing apple harvest in an apartment is a glazed, insulated balcony. The air temperature in such a room in winter does not drop below + 3-5C, which keeps the apple from freezing and spoilage.
There are several ways to store apples on an insulated balcony:
We use plastic bags
Carefully sorted apples are packed in plastic bags of 2-3 kg. After the package is well tied and sent for storage.
Several holes must be made in the bag (you can use a toothpick)... This is necessary so that ethylene gas escapes from the bag, which accelerates the process of spoilage and decay of sweet fruits.
Store apples in a plastic bag at a temperature of + 1-4 ° C for one to three months.
Flexible container
This special fabric bag, consisting of several layers of insulating material and a heating element along the contour, is an excellent storage solution for apples for those who cannot boast of a large balcony area.
Paper
The easiest, most affordable and often used method of storing apples is in a box, wrapped in paper.
As a wrapper you can use:
- paper towels,
- napkins,
- writing paper.
It is better to discard old newspapers and magazines, as printing ink may remain on the apple peel.
For all its simplicity, this method is most effective if the apple harvest is small.
Wooden crates, cardboard boxes
Such a container is suitable only if the loggia is glazed and insulated... The sorted fruits are carefully placed in boxes or boxes, trying to make sure that they do not come into contact with each other too much.
Apples are laid out in no more than two or three layers. Experts recommend sprinkling each layer with dry sawdust or shavings, straw or sand (must be calcined for several minutes in the oven).
Thermobox
This storage method allows the hostess not to worry that the apples will freeze on the balcony at sub-zero temperatures outside the window.
Thermobox is a special design consisting of two boxes of different sizes... The boxes must be selected in such a way that when they are put into one another, there is a gap of 10-15 cm between them.
In the future, it is filled with any insulating material: foam balls, shavings or sawdust, cotton wool, rags. The easiest way is to blow out the gap with polyurethane foam.
After the insulated box is assembled, a sheet of foam is laid on the bottom... The thermobox is closed with a lid, also upholstered with foam. Additionally, after the fruits are laid, the thermobox is covered with an old cotton blanket, tarpaulin.
To prevent apples from crushing each other under their own weight, each layer is shifted with sheets of cardboard or thick paper.
If there is no insulation
The temperature regime for long-term storage of apples varies within + 2-5C. Unfortunately, it is very difficult to provide the necessary storage conditions on an insulated balcony in winter.
As soon as the thermometer starts to show sub-zero air temperature, the fruit boxes must be moved to a warmer place.
Alternatively, an alternative to moving fruit boxes will be to install a so-called "balcony cellar" on an insulated balcony. This is a box with double walls, between which insulation is laid (sheets of foam or expanded polystyrene).
To maintain the required temperature in the "balcony cellar" in frosts, small air heating elements with thermostats are installed along the outer contour of the box.
Experts advise to equip "balcony cellars" along the outer wall balcony. Due to the fact that the facade is warmed up by the sun, it is possible to reduce energy consumption.
Ideally, a thermo box with Tens looks like a low (apples are stacked in a maximum of two layers), a wide structure, stretched along the entire length of the outer wall of the balcony.
When connecting an electrical heating element, fire safety regulations must be observed. The places of contact between the heating elements and the walls of the box must be laid with non-combustible materials.
Advice
It is important to follow these recommendations:
- At least once a month, it is necessary to audit the apple stocks on the balcony. Fruits with the slightest signs of rot are immediately removed from the box, as they can damage the entire crop.
- Do not constantly move the boxes with apples from a cool balcony to a warm room and back. A sharp change in ambient air temperature accelerates the process of fruit spoilage.
- Do not store apples with vegetables. Ethylene gas released by sweet fruits significantly reduces the shelf life of root crops.
- If there is no thermometer, then one proven method will help to understand that the fruit must be removed from the balcony. A jar filled with water is left on the loggia. The signal that the fruit harvest needs to be taken out to a warm place is the first ice on the water surface in the jar.
Conclusion
Using the tips for storing apples on the balcony in practice, you can enjoy the taste of fresh juicy fruits for as long as possible.
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