Recommendations and ways to store apples on the balcony in autumn and winter
Owners of private houses store the harvested apples in a cool cellar or garage. But what should those who live in an apartment in a multi-storey building do?
By putting into 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 you need to remember is that only winter varieties of apples (for example, Calville or Rosemary) are suitable for storage on the balcony. The fruits are distinguished by a thickened skin, covered with an even natural waxy coating.
Subject to certain conditions, winter varieties perfectly preserved:
- taste,
- juiciness,
- aroma for five to eight months after collection.
Autumn varieties do not last long (no more than two months). When harvesting apples of summer varieties, you need to think in advance about how to process them (apples are stored for no more than two weeks).
Only sorted fruits are suitable for storage. The fruits must be whole, without signs of rotting, uniform in color and density. Apples are also sorted by size. Small fruits are sorted for storage in a separate box (they spoil faster).
You will find all the most important things about storing apples Here.
At what temperature, humidity and other storage conditions?
Fruit can be preserved if the following conditions are met:
- temperature range from +°1C and above;
- air humidity not lower than 85%;
- using only closed containers (fruits begin to deteriorate faster when exposed to sunlight);
- away from other fruits and vegetables.
Read about the temperature at which apples can be stored at home in winter. article.
If the loggia is insulated, glazed
The ideal option for storing apple harvests in an apartment is a glazed, insulated balcony. The air temperature in such a room in winter does not fall below +3-5C, which protects 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 packaged in plastic bags of 2-3 kg. Afterwards, the bag is tightly tied and sent for storage.
Be sure to make several holes in the bag (you can use a toothpick). This is necessary so that ethylene gas comes out of the bag, accelerating the process of spoilage and rotting 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 apple storage solution for those who do not have a large balcony area.
paper
The simplest, most accessible and often used way to store apples is in a box, wrapped in paper.
Can be used as a wrapper:
- paper towels,
- napkins,
- writing paper.
It is better to discard old newspapers and magazines, as printing ink may remain on the apple peel.
Despite its simplicity, this method is most effective if the apple harvest is small.
Wooden boxes, cardboard boxes
Such containers are only suitable if the loggia is glazed and insulated. The sorted fruits are carefully placed in boxes or boxes, trying to ensure that they do not come into too much contact with each other.
The 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 (necessarily calcined for several minutes in the oven).
Thermal box
This storage method allows the housewife not to worry that the apples will freeze on the balcony at sub-zero air temperatures outside the window.
Thermal box is a special design consisting of two boxes of different sizes. The boxes must be selected in such a way that when inserting one into another, there is a gap of 10-15 cm between them.
Subsequently, it is filled with any insulating material: foam balls, shavings or sawdust, cotton wool, rags. The easiest way is to fill the gap with foam.
After the insulated box is assembled, a sheet of foam plastic is placed on the bottom. The thermal box is closed with a lid, also lined with foam. Additionally, after the fruit is laid, the thermal box is covered with an old cotton blanket or tarpaulin.
To prevent the apples from crushing each other under their own weight, each layer is laid out with sheets of cardboard or thick paper.
If there is no insulation
The temperature regime for long-term storage of apples varies between +2-5C. Unfortunately, it is very difficult to provide the necessary storage conditions in winter on an uninsulated balcony.
As soon as the thermometer begins to show sub-zero air temperature, fruit boxes need to be moved to a warmer place.
As an option, an alternative to moving fruit boxes would be to install a so-called “balcony cellar” on an uninsulated balcony. This is a box with double walls, between which there is insulation (sheets of polystyrene foam or expanded polystyrene).
To maintain the required temperature in the “balcony cellar” in cold weather, small air heating elements with thermostats are installed along the outer contour of the box.
Experts advise setting up “balcony cellars” along the outer wall balcony Due to the fact that the façade is heated by the sun, energy consumption can be reduced.
Ideally, a thermal box with Tenami looks like a low (apples are laid in a maximum of two layers), wide structure, stretched along the entire length of the outer wall of the balcony.
When connecting an electric heating element, fire safety regulations must be observed. The contact points between the tens and the walls of the box must be laid with fireproof materials.
Adviсe
It is important to follow these recommendations:
- At least once a month it is necessary to inspect the apple stocks on the balcony. Fruits with the slightest signs of rot are immediately removed from the box, as they can cause damage to the entire crop.
- You cannot constantly move boxes of apples from a cool balcony to a warm room and back. A sharp change in ambient air temperature accelerates the process of fruit spoilage.
- Apples should not be stored together with vegetables. Ethylene gas released by sweet fruits significantly reduces the shelf life of root vegetables.
- If you don’t have a thermometer, then one proven method will help you understand that the fruit needs to be removed from the balcony. A jar filled with water is left on the loggia. The signal that the fruit crop needs to be taken to a warm place is the first ice on the surface of the water in the jar.
Conclusion
Using tips for storing apples on the balcony in practice, you can enjoy the taste of fresh juicy fruit for as long as possible.
