Happy Apple Month!!

  

 Happy Apple Month!  This month, I'll be featuring blog posts all about apples.  

I am helping Carolyn set up a NS Fruit Growers' Facebook Page, "Like" that for tons of apple tips and recipes this month!

Here's a GREAT poster with many of the NS Apple varieties, when they are available, and what they are best used for:

Found this handy tip sheet on storing apples on the Nova Scotia Fruit Growers' Association Website, a very common question from our customers:

Keeping Apples at Home

When stored correctly, Nova Scotia apples will stay crisp and crunchy at home.
Some tips to help keep 'em crunchy:

• Handle with care to prevent bruising.
• Don't wash apples until you are ready to use them.
• Store plastic bags of apples in the refrigerator. This prevents decay, slows down ripening and helps maintain juiciness. Apples soften 10 times faster at room temperature.
• Store baskets of apples in a cool, dark, well-ventilated room (0-4 C or 32-40 F). Cover with perforated plastic to prevent shriveling.
• As apples mature, they produce ethylene gas. You can use an apple to help ripen pears, bananas, peaches and plums - simply put an apple in a paper bag with these fruits.
• Because ethylene gas can damage them, don't store apples with cucumbers, cole crops (i.e., broccoli, cabbage and cauliflower) or leafy greens (such as lettuce and spinach).
• Don't store bruised or damaged apples with other apples. They may cause the other apples to break down.
• If apples begin to get soft - MAKE APPLESAUCE!