Winter apples like the Boskop are harvested late in the year. Only then have they reached full maturity and can be kept for a long time. In contrast to summer or autumn apples, however, they only taste best after they have been stored for some time. The Boskop is a sour apple variety that is suitable for many uses. In most cases it is also suitable for allergy sufferers.
Other synonyms:
- Nicer from Boskoop
- Boskoop
- Renette from Montfort
- Red Boskoop
Harvest time 2020
In the case of winter apples, a distinction is made between being ripe for picking and ripe for consumption. The boskop is ready for harvest between the end of September and the end of October. That depends on the exact location and the weather. In 2020, the Boskop harvest may be completely canceled in some places due to the drought last year. You can check on the tree whether an apple is ready to be harvested. The apple is tilted slightly upwards and rotated. Does he break away from
Branch, it is ready for harvest. Another way to tell how wide the apples are is to cut through an apple. If the pips in the casing are brown, the apple is ripe.Note: Worm-eaten apples are often not ripe and fall from the tree much earlier.
technology
Equipment necessary for harvesting (depending on the height of the apple tree):
- small or larger ladder
- Apple or Long handle fruit picker
- One basket each for the windfalls and the rotten apples
- Wooden boxes for the picked apples
- possibly a roller collector to collect apples from the floor without having to touch them
- It makes sense to have several helpers with larger trees
instructions
1. Before the boskop harvest begins, the grass under the tree should be cut. This can also be done before the harvest time, so that the windfalls can be picked up regularly.
Note:
After autumn storms, there are usually a particularly large number of apples on the ground.2. Before the fruit is taken from the tree, the fruit is first picked from the ground. Windfalls are collected in baskets separately from rotten apples.
3. The easily accessible apples in the lower area are picked by hand. Every apple that falls to the ground belongs in the basket with the windfalls; it would not be suitable for storage because of the bruises. All other apples are layered in a single layer in wooden boxes.
4. After the lower area has been harvested, the middle and upper area are harvested with the apple picker. The collection bag usually fits several apples, but it still has to be emptied more often so that no apples fall next to it. Using a fruit picker can take some practice.
5. If the length of the apple picker is no longer sufficient, a ladder is used. Use caution when adjusting the ladder. In any case, it has to be secure.
Store Boskop apples
Correct storage after harvesting is crucial for winter apples so that they are ready for consumption in a healthy way. This is between December and March at the Boskop.
1. Select the apples before storing. Sort out all chipped, rotten, worm-eaten or otherwise damaged apples.
2. The storage location should be cool, dark and
by no means be too dry. Otherwise the apples will shrivel too quickly. An old natural cellar is best. Frost-free garages and sheds can also be used as storage.3. There should be no other fruit or vegetables in the warehouse, as apples excrete the ripening gas ethylene, which not only makes other fruits ripen faster, but also ensures that they ripen faster spoil.
4. The storage apples are spread out in a single layer either in wooden stairs or on wooden boards so that they do not touch. Newsprint is well suited as a base.
5. The apple store should be ventilated regularly in frost-free weather. If the storage location is too dry, bowls of water can be set up.
6. The apples should be checked at least once a week; all apples that are moldy or rotten are removed from the warehouse.
7. In a cheap store, the apples can be kept until next spring.
Processing of windfalls
While all rotten, moldy or otherwise spoiled fruits end up in the compost, the windfalls should be processed quickly. If these are apples that have fallen from the tree a long time before the actual harvest, they are almost always worm-eaten. They can still be processed, simply cut out the relevant areas.
Processing options:
- Juice and then jelly
- applesauce
- Jam or chutneys