Might they not still be usable for cooking or baking?
Mike
I have cooking apples in the house, I wanted to store those. I am guessing I could make a large pot right now, but not in a week.
The apples I put out at 21 degrees were not damaged, but the temp only held for an hour and a half and then gradually started to rise. I will try again next cold spell if temps are predicted to be similar. Put them out in the early eve.
Mine had a funny taste to them and by the looks of them inside would break down in baking.
I was just picking peppers a fewdays ago now into the compost pile they go!
Here is a pic of the Granny Smith I picked a few days ago (see post above on 11/10). The other side was a darker green but this side had some red blush. There was more going on taste wise than just sour. My wife thought it had a “florally taste”. Too bad I only got one this year.
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I was thinking sweeter apples would handle lower temps better than tart but now I wonder. A friend’s unknown apples we picked last week are definitely low sugar (based on taste anyway) and are fine so far. And they had gone through many at least 20 degree nights, maybe lower. I had two 16 degrees in my orchard but we’re in a valley. As I mentioned above, some small Black Oxfords I’d left on the tree were OK (I’m storing one to see how it does, but it is a runt apple compared to the main crop picked earlier). One thing both apples have in common is firm/dense texture. Wish I had GoldRush to test! In spite of the late BO’s doing Ok I still wouldn’t leave my main crops on the tree for that low of temps.
I ran across this piece from the Univ Penn. on handling frozen apples which I thought interesting: https://extension.psu.edu/handling-of-frozen-apples Sue
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Bob brought it to my attention that the tree on my property I’d purchased from Cummin’s was mislabled as Ashmead’s Kernel, which surprises me because I have a customer that bought what must be Ash from the NYFT nursery, presumably the original source of Cummin’s wood. What they sold me ripens several weeks sooner and is a solid russet. Its high acid-sugar flavor and somewhat grainy texture is very similar to what I now believe to be the genuine variety, based on comparing it to photos. I picked some apples from the “genuine” tree and left one in my truck before we had the 17F freeze. Other apples in the car were mush, including Goldrush, but the AK was firm, crisp and absolutely delicious. It was stored higher in the truck than the other apples, so I’m not sure what this proves beyond that I need to graft some real AK wood into my own nursery, but keep the mystery Russet- the best flavored Russet I have ever eaten.
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Just climbed a ladder to get last two Winesaps down. They seem totally untouched by the cold snap. And have improved on the tree. I saved some in my fridge so will see how they are in a months time.
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I found some Goldrush on a tree in my nursery that were still firm and good to eat. They were softened just a tad by the hard freeze that reached around 17 on parts of my property. This tree was at the lower elevation of my property and I can’t see how the spot is particularly protected. My takeaway is that Rush is probably safe down to at least 21F
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My Goldrush
my Goldrush
next to my Winesap didn’t fair great. Most were inedible some were a bit harder, but very little flavor and still a little soft. Bottom one seemed more ripe and was worse than the lesser ripe one.
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Cape Cod would be stretching it. Because the ocean lowers temps in general and you get more fog it seems things ripen a bit later. You probably will only get good Rush on years with early spring and plenty of clear days. Dawn to dusk sun helps as does pruning them wide open.
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John is in zone 7a, a zone warmer than mine. If he has difficulty ripening GR, mine would likely be worse. For mine, the ones facing the sun ripened earlier than those in a shadier location ( not fully ripened when picked)
Ripening GR in time (or not) was my concern for me. Nowadays, I am not that concerned. I also have a few other varieties on it. I’ll get something.
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No, coastal conditions delay ripening a great deal. I have customers on the beach in Greenwich CT and Westport. They get the benefit of seldom suffering consequences of frost, but the cooler air and more filtered sun delays ripening.
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I’m moving and ordering a few more apple trees and putting them in the center of my veggie garden so some of my trees will get more all day sun. Home yards aren’t great for picture perfect apples. I get some nice ones, but others just don’t get enough sun.
FYI, the industry standard is -2 to -3 Celsius in CA storage. If below -3, apples may be frozen.
That’s about 26-28 F.
From what you stated, when it gets down to 24-25 F, apples in storage get damaged.
I personally will pick apples from my trees when temp hits 25-26 F, to be on a safe side.
Beside the temperature, the length is another factor. If it hits 24 -25 just a couple of hours, apples should be ok. The industry standards tell that apples store best without damage for months in that range. Apples may survive the lower temperature.