Looking for Apple Picking Tips in 2024? Scroll down this page and follow the links. And if you bring home some fruit or vegetables and want to can, freeze, make jam, salsa or pickles, see this page for simple, reliable, illustrated canning, freezing or preserving directions . There are plenty of other related resources, click on the resources dropdown above. If you are having a hard time finding canning lids, I've used these, and they're a great price & ship in 2 days .
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Notes for May 2024: Spring is here! Strawberry season is here. It started in February in Florida, Texas, southern California and a few other areas of the Deep South; then March along the Gulf coast, April in the Deep South and west coast, May through much of the country, and June in northern areas. Blueberries are next, about a month later. Of course, cool weather crops, like Rhubarb, asparagus and greens should be available almost everywhere. Check your area's crop calendar (see this page) and call your local farms for seasonal updates.
Are carpenter bees boring holes into your house, shed or barn? There is a simple non-toxic solution !
You may also be interested in finding a local:
We also have home canning, preserving, drying and freezing directions . You can access recipes and other resources from the drop down menus at the top of the page or the site search. If you have any questions or suggestions, feel free to write me! It is easy to make your own ice cream, even gelato, or low fat or low sugar ice cream - see this page .
NEW!
Start your own tomato, pepper, squash and other vegetable plants from seed
- It's easy and
costs about
50 cents per plant
.
Also see our Master list of tomato varieties,
with descriptions, details and links to ordering the seedss
.
Also note, there are many copycat website listing U-pick farms now. They have all copied their information from here and usually do not ever update. Since 2002, I've been updating the information every day but Christmas; so if you see anything wrong or outdated, please write me!
Apples are one of the easiest fruit to pick and use. They're big, not easily bruised, most varieties store well, they can be eaten fresh, cooked, canned, frozen and made into many tasty and healthy dishes. Apples are fat-free, low sodium, and cholesterol-free. A bushel weighs between 42 and 48 lbs and typically has 85 to 95 apples, depending on their size. And if you're looking for many, many facts about apples, see this page!
See these pages to find a local pick your own apple orchard!
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Most modern apple orchards have dwarf trees that are very close to the ground - my 3 year old found it easy to pick apples! (photo above and below)
Select firm, bruise-free apples. The color can be anything from dark green, to yellow, pink, orange, bright red, dark red or even a combination. It all depends on the variety. And color is not really how you tell when an apple is ripe. Apples should be crisp and firm.
The key will be to ask the farmer which are ripe. He will know because it is calculated from the number of days since the trees flowered. And he will track that date carefully , if he's a good apple grower!
The farmer will also know what characteristics to look for in the particular varieties that he is growing.
Apples ripen from the outside of the tree towards the center, so the apples out the outside of the tree will ripen first. Once they are picked, they stop ripening. Picking apples directly from a tree is easy. Roll the apple upwards off the branch and give a little twist; don't pull straight away from the tree. If two apples are joined together at the top, both will come away at the same time. Don't shake the trees or branches. If the apple you are trying to pick drops, (or others on the tree) go ahead and pick it up. They're perfectly fine! But do wash them before you eat them!
A visitor who grew up on an orchard says to try to leave the stem on the apples. He says that helped them store longer!
You may have read on a website somewhere that you can buy unripe apples and ripen them at home. Nope, not really. See this page for an explanation along with references and links to sources.
Of the apple, that is. You really need to choose the type of apple that is best suited for your purpose. Apples can be suited for eating fresh, cooking, baking, applesauce, storing, etc. I have a fairly extensive guide to apple varieties here!
You should get this much...
Commonly made products
1 bushel = 10 to 12 qt. juice
1 peck makes 2.5 to 3.5 qt. juice
I do and it's easy and fast. Apple trees I planted in my yard two years ago are bearing several dozen fruit each this year! Here's a guide to selecting a variety to grow and how !
And a fun tour? Check out Cider Mills.com ! They list the cider mills where you can go for a tour (and tasting! yum!)
The U.S. Apple Association's estimate of the size of the 2014 United States apple crop is 263.8 million bushels. The USDA's August 12th estimate was for 259.2 million bushels.
See this page for much more detailed information about the apple crop and apple production trends.
Water bath canner with a jar rack
Pressure canners for gas, electric and induction stoves: Presto 23Qt or T-fal 22Qt
Canning scoop (this one is PERFECT)
Get the
most recent version of
the Ball Blue Book
Get the
most recent version of
the Ball Blue Book of Home Canning
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