Master class watch online: We sew bags for dried apples with applique elements

The shelf life of an apple depends on the shelf life of the fruit - the ability to maintain its appearance and nutritional value for a long time. Moreover, the keeping quality itself depends not only on the variety, but also on the integrity of the skin and pulp of the apple. Broken fruits begin to deteriorate literally on the day they are stored; therefore, when setting up an apple storage system, it is necessary to take care not only of sorting the fruits, but also of reliable containers that ensure the safety of the product during the process of loading and unloading the warehouse.

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Summer residents often say that growing a good harvest is easier than preserving it. in a city apartment it is not easy to create conditions that will allow you to eat fresh apples from your own garden all winter. but difficult doesn’t mean impossible

What varieties of apples store best?

It starts with choosing the right variety. No matter how hard we try, tender summer apples, even in ideal conditions, will not last long - they will quickly become wadded, dry and tasteless. For example, the maximum possible shelf life of the fruits of the beloved White filling variety is 2-3 weeks.

But even in late (autumn and winter) varieties, keeping quality varies. For example, the popular Antonovka ordinary is stored only until the New Year. Under the most favorable circumstances, apples will still be suitable for eating in January, but you will no longer find their former juiciness. But by this time the Northern Synapse is just ripening in storage. Its fruits, in suitable conditions, can last until the end of spring.

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Thus, if, despite all your efforts, your apples last no longer than 1.5 - 2 months, perhaps the reason lies in the keeping quality of a particular variety.

Types of coolers

The fruits are picked when the outside temperature is still quite high. For long-term storage, they must be cooled and subsequently maintained at a certain temperature.

For winter varieties, the temperature in the mass should be -1...+1 ℃, humidity 85-95%, they can be stored for 150-365 days. For summer apples, this period is 2 times less, and the temperature in the mass can be 0…+1 ℃.

The temperature in the fruit storage chamber is reduced using coolers:

evaporative type. Water is used for cooling; the equipment is simple and economical;
with intermediate coolant. A propylene glycol solution is used as a coolant. This is a vapor compression type of machine. Suitable for large storage volumes;
complex mixing plants. They provide cooling, recirculation and addition of fresh air in the chamber with fruit.

Evaporators work in conjunction with powerful axial fans. Several air blowers can be assembled into one unit. The devices are equipped with a water collection tray and a heater.

Gravity evaporators operate without fans and do not create noise or drafts. Installed in rooms where people are present or particularly delicate products are stored.

Important conditions for storing apple harvests

Often, gardeners, trying to extend the life of fresh fruits, invent very extravagant methods (for example, keeping apples under an ultraviolet lamp or sealing them in bags filled with carbon dioxide). Meanwhile, fruits of the right variety in suitable conditions can, without any tricks, safely last the entire period allotted to them by nature. Therefore, it is the conditions (and not at all the tricks of laying or processing the crop) that should be taken care of first.

The most important factors are temperature and humidity. In a warm, dry room, apples will quickly wilt. If the fruits are frozen, they will spoil immediately after thawing. The optimal temperature for storage is ... + 4°C and humidity at 85 - 95%. Where can you find such conditions? For example, in a city apartment it could be a refrigerator (which, unfortunately, won’t fit many apples) or an insulated box on a closed loggia. But, of course, the best thing is a cellar or basement that does not freeze even in severe frosts.

Is it possible to store apples together with other vegetables and fruits?

Gardeners' opinions on this matter are divided: some believe that this is acceptable, others argue that the mutual influence will be negative. In fact, if the apples are in a separate container, there are usually no problems. But it’s worth keeping in mind: requirements for storage conditions for fruits and vegetables may vary. That is, the point is not so much the incompatibility of apples with other dacha gifts, but rather the discrepancy between their needs.

It is also very important to remove the fruits from the tree correctly and on time: unripe and overripe apples damaged during harvesting will not be stored for long. However, there is a little trick: if the damage is minor (for example, you accidentally touched an apple and it fell from a branch into the grass, but its skin is not broken), the fruits can be put aside for a while, and then primarily used for food. In favorable conditions and with regular monitoring, fruits with minor damage can be stored for up to a month, and maybe longer.

Methods for storing apples

As already mentioned, if the variety is chosen correctly and the conditions are close to optimal, the apples will be perfectly stored without any tricks. It is enough to carefully place dry, clean, undamaged fruits in rows in baskets or boxes and put the filled containers in storage. This is the easiest option, but still gives good results.

It is believed that one rotten apple can spoil all neighboring ones, so the fruits should not touch. In fact, this does not always happen. In winter, you can find a completely blackened fruit in a box among healthy apples without the slightest sign of rot. But, of course, it won’t be any worse if you carefully wrap each fruit in a paper napkin before putting it in the box. It's just a rather labor-intensive task.

You can solve the problem faster and easier if you use wood shavings or sawdust: they are poured onto the bottom of the container in which the apples are placed, and then sprinkled over each layer of fruit, creating a loose, airy layer. The effect is the same as when wrapping fruits with paper, but much less labor will have to be spent.

If the storage is too dry, the fruits can be sprinkled with washed and dried sand (pure or mixed with ash - to prevent various rots). This method will help reduce moisture evaporation, and the apples will remain juicy and elastic longer. It is better not to use this method for wet rooms: the sand backfill is quite dense, the fruits are poorly ventilated, and if the sand becomes damp, they will begin to rot.

Apples are well preserved when packed in regular plastic bags. And it’s convenient to get: you don’t need to select fruits individually, you just need to take care of the portion packaging right away. But when choosing this option, keep in mind: there should be no sudden temperature changes in the storage facility, which can cause condensation to form. Excess moisture will cause the fruits to deteriorate. If the room temperature is above + 4 °C, it is also better to refuse such packaging.

Some summer residents put bags of apples in mini-cellars equipped on the site. The structure is a barrel dug into the ground or just a hole into which spruce branches are laid to protect against rodents, the packaged fruits are lowered, the spruce branches are laid again and covered with a wooden lid, which is additionally insulated (soil, snow, other available materials).

According to reviews, apples are perfectly preserved, but this method also has many disadvantages: mice can enter the mini-cellar, during thaws and in early spring it is in danger of being flooded with melt water, and not everyone is able to make their way through the snowdrifts to their storage in the middle of winter. dig up a kilogram or two of fresh apples.

On the other hand, if your apples are of a good variety and your harvests are satisfactory, but there is no other place nearby that allows you to create suitable conditions, perhaps a country cellar is the best option. You just need to arrange it wisely, but the effort is worth it: after all, no store-bought fruit can compare with something grown with your own hands and carefully preserved.

First, let's talk about the features of these fruits. Apples, especially those that are riper and larger in size, produce large amounts of ethylene. And ethylene gas promotes faster ripening of both other vegetables and not yet fully ripened apples. Also, increased ethylene content promotes sprouting and faster spoilage of vegetables such as potatoes, carrots and celery.

So if you were wondering how to store apples in the cellar along with potatoes, carrots and other vegetables, then the answer is simple: “No way.” It is better to allocate a separate pantry or cellar for apples, unless, of course, you want to store them longer.

Manufacturing process

First, I sawed the board with a jigsaw into two parts 120 cm long and 70 cm long (along the length and width of the couch). By the way, I took a board of not very good quality with wood chips, but in principle this is quite enough.

Then I sawed a blind hole in the block for the head of a furniture bolt using a hole saw. At the same time, along with this hole, a through hole with a diameter of 6 mm was drilled.

Using a semicircular chisel, I removed the middle from the blind hole.

And he sawed off a part of the block with a hole in the middle with a jigsaw, the length being equal to the width of the board.

I had to make this hole because the furniture bolt I was going to use was not long enough. If I could find a bolt that was 30 millimeters longer, then I could do without this hole altogether.

I then drilled two screw holes at the end of the long board using a 4mm drill bit.

I countersinked the ends of the holes for the screw heads using a spherical wood cutter.

At the end of the short board, I drilled a hole with a 6.5mm drill bit.

And then I sawed a groove from the end of the board to this hole with a jigsaw.

After that, I screwed a block with a hole for a furniture bolt to a long board using two wood screws.

I sanded everything down and inserted a furniture bolt into the hole with a washer and wing nut installed on it.

And now our half-box is ready!

Here's what it looks like disassembled.

Now let's assemble it. To do this, place two boards at right angles to each other and insert a furniture bolt into the groove of the short board.

After this, tighten the wing nut thoroughly.

All this took less than five seconds.

And here is our assembled half-box.

Now let's take it apart and move it to the veranda, where we will put it back together on the couch. After that, we'll start layering the apples.

And this is what a half-box filled with apples looks like.

And that's not all the apples, because there are still a few more baskets left to add.

But the most important thing is that now the apples will lie securely and will not fall or crumble.

I must say that, despite the fact that the design of this half-box is very simple, the very idea of such a design seems very promising to me.

After all, in this way, you can make not only a collapsible half-box consisting of two walls, but also three and even four, that is, you can practically make an ordinary box without a bottom. In this case, you will need to use four furniture bolts with washers and wing nuts and four bars into which they will be inserted.

In turn, such a box can be made quite large (after all, it will still be collapsible) and used not only for storing apples, but also for storing, say, potatoes in a cellar or underground, or other vegetables.

After the vegetables run out, you can quickly disassemble this box and put it in storage somewhere in the barn until the next harvest, where it will take up very little space.

If desired, you can also make a bottom for such a box, for example in the form of a plywood or wooden board made of boards on which this box will be installed. The walls of the box can also be made of different heights, using boards of the appropriate width.

Just remember that the larger the size of the box and its walls, the more powerful furniture bolts and nuts will need to be used, for example, M8 or M10.

Well, that's all for me! Goodbye everyone and good ideas for homemade crafts!

Read also: Phlox catarina photo and description

By the way, not only potatoes suffer from storing apples and potatoes in the same cellar; they begin to germinate faster under the influence of ethylene. Apples get it too. If you keep them together in the same room for only a day or two, then a disaster is unlikely to happen, but with long-term storage, apples will develop an unpleasant starchy taste.

At lower temperatures (about 0°C) the release of ethylene is less. Therefore, the best storage temperature for apples in winter is about 0°C. The minimum storage temperature for apples is -1°C, and the maximum is +5°C. Relative air humidity is desirable in the range of 85-90% (maximum 95%).

Three components of long-term storage

It turns out that preparing apples for storage is not such a simple thing. This only seems to be the case at first glance: carefully put the beautiful fruits in a box - and the job is done. Not so! In order for apples to delight you with their freshness and “marketable appearance” all winter and spring, you need to know three secrets.

Secret 1: choose a variety suitable for storage

How long apples will be stored depends directly on their variety. Not everyone has the ability to retain food and nutritional properties for a long time (which, in fact, is called keeping quality).

For the middle zone these are: Antonovka ordinary, Bogatyr, Vityaz, Northern Sinap, Zhigulevskoe, Mayak, Orlovskoe winter, Izbornitsa, Cortland, Bananovoe, Melba and Welsey. For the southern regions: Jonathan, Aurora Crimean, Renet Simirenko, Starking and Olympic.

Storage duration depends on the variety:

summer apples are stored for 2-4 weeks at a temperature of 2-8 degrees;
autumn varieties - 1-2 months at a temperature of 0-8 degrees;
winter varieties (Renet Simirenko, Babushkino, Rozmarin, Calville snowy, Bellefleur) are stored for 4–7 months at + 5 degrees.

Secret 2: correctly remove apples from the tree

If you are planning to store apples in their natural form, then from the moment of picking you need to start acting according to the rules, because their “further life” largely depends on how you do this.

You need to pick the fruits at the moment of removable ripeness (when healthy ripe apples have just begun to fall - 5-6 pieces per day);
remove fruits only in dry weather;
do not tear off the stalk;
do not wipe off the natural waxy coating (matte film);
Do not throw away the picked apples , but carefully place them in prepared containers;
In order not to injure the fruits when picking, you need to start from the lower branches , moving to the upper ones.

Secret 3. Be sure to sort the apples

Some inexperienced gardeners, having removed apples from the tree directly into boxes, immediately send them to the cellar “for the winter.” And they make a mistake. Before sorting, it is really better to keep the apples for 2-3 weeks in a cool room so that signs of possible defects appear.

But then you need to do the following:

select for storage only healthy fruits without mechanical damage, preferably with stalks;
to separate apples of different varieties for storage;
It is better to sort the fruits by size : separately large, medium and small;
There is no need to wash or wipe the apples!

Rules for placing containers with harvest

Due to the nature of the arched structure, it is necessary to install retaining walls on the sides so as not to damage the arches. This will allow you to make maximum use of the useful internal space.

Containers are placed in stacks according to a pre-drawn plan, leaving space for monitoring the condition of the fruits and loading and unloading operations. Some boxes from one batch should be positioned so that the markings are visible from the aisle. If the area of the fruit storage chamber is less than 100 square meters. m, then there is no need to make passes.

The distance from the wall to the boxes closest to it must be at least 30 cm. A similar requirement applies to the distance between the ceiling and the top of the stacks of apples. There must be at least 80 cm to air ducts, cooling and heating devices.

If apples of different varieties are placed in one chamber, then varieties with a shorter shelf life are placed closer to the exit.

Methods for storing apples

There are several ways to store apples at home:

on the racks. It would be better if these were racks with drawers to make it easier to inspect the fruits and take them out for eating. On such racks, apples are stacked in 1 row and, preferably, so that they do not touch each other;
in wooden boxes. If you stack the boxes one on top of the other, do not overfill them with fruits, otherwise the top box will take in the apples of the bottom one and they will begin to spoil. Fruits must be placed in boxes very carefully to avoid wounds and dents. Remember that apples can also be injured by the stem. At the same time, the stalk cannot be cut off. It is better to transfer the apples by hand, especially since you will still be sorting and calibrating them;
in wooden containers. If you eat a lot of apples, you can store them in containers. But it seems to me that this is not very convenient, since the upper fruits will put very much pressure on the lower ones and, accordingly, they will begin to deteriorate;
in cardboard boxes. It is advisable to seal such boxes with tape to avoid them breaking at the most inopportune moment. The principle of folding is the same as in wooden boxes. We recommend attaching a label to the boxes or shelves with information about the variety and date of storage. You can also indicate the size of the apples if you have them wrapped or sprinkled with something;
in sawdust . Sawdust must be from hardwood. As a rule, it is recommended to use pine shavings for storing vegetables. But apples, as mentioned above, are capable of absorbing foreign odors;
in sand . Sand for these purposes should be taken almost dry; it should first be sifted and calcined for disinfection. Sand is poured into a 10 cm layer at the bottom of the box, and the first layer of apples is laid. There should be small gaps between the fruits. After this, the first layer is completely covered with sand and the second is laid on top. This storage method, like the previous two, is good for small harvest volumes;
in plastic bags . For this method we will need small plastic bags. Apples are packaged in 1–2 kilograms. The bags are tied and placed on racks for storage.

We sew bags for dried apples with applique elements

This year turned out to be very fruitful for apples. What haven’t we done with them...

At the end of the season, as the autumn varieties began to ripen, we bought an electric dryer, and the question arose, what should we store dried apples in so that they do not lose their aroma and do not spoil? The answer came quickly - to sew textile bags, but I wanted beauty, and even something that would fit the interior of the kitchen. The idea to make an applique on the bags came naturally, especially since small scraps of the desired color remained from previous projects.

Materials we will need:

white cotton (I have 2 pieces of 45 by 45 cm, your sizes may be different);
for the drawstring, a strip of fabric 4 cm wide and 90 cm long, that is, 2 widths of the bag;
colored fabric for applique;
threads for sewing and embroidery (I have white, brown, green and pink embroidery);
satin ribbons for ties;
scissors;
applique pattern (I drew it by hand);
a piece of stabilizer for embroidery (I use tear-off for machine embroidery);
glue web;
as well as sewing needles, a safety pin, a sewing machine, if available, then an overlocker;
for marking - a disappearing marker, you can use a pencil, chalk, etc., a ruler.

So let's get started.

Using a pencil or a disappearing marker on a colored fabric along the wrong side, we outline our future applique of an apple and a leaf and cut it out. Also visible in the photo is a strip of fabric prepared for the drawstring.

We process all sections of the drawstring to prevent fraying (either with an overlocker or using a zigzag machine). I have leftover striped fabric, so there are connecting seams, I also put them under the overlock.

Here I’ll immediately make a reservation that it is advisable to choose a thinner fabric for the drawstring to make it more convenient to tighten the ribbon. I was forced to use this particular fabric, since it was the right color (I think many will recognize it - it is a bit dense for these purposes).

If your bag consists of 2 halves of white fabric, like mine, then at this stage you can stitch one side seam and treat it to prevent fraying so that you can sew on a drawstring.

We bend the short section of the drawstring and sew it off. We need to bend a little more than the side seam allowances of the bag so that when we sew the second side seam, we won’t be able to sew up the holes for the ribbon.

Iron the edges of the drawstring, as in the photo.

We mark the location of the drawstring on the bag; it is convenient to do this with a disappearing marker. I stepped back 7 cm from the edge of the fabric, but you can do less or, on the contrary, more.

Instead of a strip of fabric, you can sew a satin ribbon 2.5 cm wide (at the same time, I started sewing another bag in other colors). In this case, the short edge of the tape can be melted rather than bent.

By the way, in order to sew on a satin ribbon and it looks neat, it is advisable to lay the stitching at the very edge; it has a sort of matte stripe there (see photo). To do this, it is convenient to change the position of the needle by moving it to the right.

I attach my fabric drawstring in the same way.

We lay out our apples on the fabric and outline where we will sew them. I use a disappearing marker to place marks in the center of the apple, along the edges, draw a twig and mark how the leaf will be positioned. I sew 2 bags at the same time and make the pattern on them symmetrical.

Marking.

In order not to forget, I iron the top edge of the bag, tucking it inward twice. The photo shows the overlock processing - I like to do the hem using an overlock stitch, then the edge turns out to be folded to the same width.

I cut a piece from the stabilizer for embroidery of such a size that the future applique will fit on it.

And I pin the stabilizer from the wrong side under the white fabric, it is important that the applique fits completely on it, otherwise when overcasting the edge with a zigzag, the fabric may be deformed.

We embroider the branch with brown threads. Zigzag stitch, stitch width 2 mm, stitch length 0.35 mm.

We embroider the apple by hand in the place where the flower was.

We place the glue web under the bull's-eye, the main thing is that it does not reach the edge of the drawn contours, otherwise there is a chance of staining the iron. Then we put the apple on the web and press it with an iron, hold it a little so that it sticks, and do the same with the leaf.

For overcasting, we use a zigzag stitch with a stitch width of 3 mm and a stitch length of 0.35 mm. Try it first on a fabric sample to adjust the tension of the threads, I loosen the top thread a little and go along the contours of the apple and leaf 2 times so that the contours are more voluminous and even.

Using a regular stitch we designate the veins on the leaf.

Please note that the zigzag stitch along all contours runs perpendicular to the edge of the applique.

View from the reverse side. My lower thread was white, it was slightly thinner than the upper one. The stabilizer can be removed by carefully tearing it off close to the stitching; if difficulties arise, you can lightly moisten it with a brush, then the stabilizer will give in easily.

The stabilizer has been removed.

Now is the time to continue sewing the bag: sew the second side edge and the bottom, bend the top of the bag, putting a line into the edge.

If you want a voluminous bottom, then you need to do the following - fold the corner as shown in the photo (the seam of the bottom of the bag is strictly in the middle). We mark 3-5 cm from the corner (the top pin shows the corner from which I marked 5 cm). For example, if you set aside 3 cm, then the width of the bottom will be 6 cm, I set aside 5 cm, the width of the bottom of my bag will be 10 cm, with a wide bottom the bag will be able to stand.

Draw a perpendicular line through the mark relative to the seam, and sew along the intended line.

We turn it inside out, this is what we got. I did not cut off the corner - it gives additional rigidity to the bottom.

All that remains is to insert the satin ribbon into the drawstring using a safety pin.

It will be useful to add a label to the bag on which you can write the type of apple and the date.

Using scissors and a hole punch, a rectangle of thick paper or cardboard is transformed into a cute tag.

And here is the result. With the label, you will know exactly what type of apple you have in which bag, as well as the year of collection, in case it comes in handy

Thank you for stopping by, I will be glad if this simple information is useful to you and inspires your creativity.

This is my first master class at the Masters Fair, so I will be grateful for your support and advice.

PS And according to my plans, I also have bags for mushrooms, and there are even a lot of mushrooms this year...

As for the best way to put apples in boxes...

There is no clear solution here. Some sources recommend laying the stalk up, while others, on the contrary, place it down. The main thing is just careful styling.

You can lay the fruits in even rows (when the fruits are located one above the other), as well as in a checkerboard pattern or diagonally. When laying in a checkerboard pattern, damage to the fruit by the stalk can be avoided.

Ideal for storage when the fruits do not touch each other. This is easiest to organize with rack storage. You can also try to organize this in drawers, but then you need to use some kind of spacers between the rows. There are special cardboard spacers with recesses for the fruit, but I don’t know if they can be purchased somewhere here. Do I need to wrap the fruits with something or sprinkle them? Well, you can pour them over and wrap them, but this is probably not always necessary, convenient or practical. It’s one thing if you have several tens of kilograms of apples, another thing if you have several hundred.

Use of plant care boxes

For order on the window during the seedling season. I already mentioned that I put cups and pots in boxes. I cover the lattice bottom with film or a bag that goes over the sides so that water and dirt from the pots do not get onto the window sill. The point is not only about order and beauty. In such a box you can move, transfer, or turn the other side of the glass towards the glass, all the seedlings at once, rather than pots individually.

These are newspaper cups in a plastic box with solid walls and bottom.

Shading of planted seedlings and seedlings. A plastic lattice box is placed upside down on the plant and pressed down with a brick to prevent it from being blown away by the wind or knocked over by cats. Plants are in diffuse shade, protected from wind and night cold. They take root faster.

Storing apples in polyethylene

For this purpose, use cling film, or small bags, or large plastic bags.

Cling film is placed on the bottom of the box in two layers crosswise so that the edges hang down. Carefully fill the box with apples, and then close the top with the edges of the film, like an envelope.
The apples, without any packaging, are taken out into a cool room for a couple of hours, after which each is placed in an individual plastic bag and tied tightly. Then the bags of apples are placed in any convenient container and taken out to the balcony.
The apples are placed in a thick plastic bag, and a piece of cotton wool soaked in alcohol or vinegar is also placed there. The bag is tied so that air does not penetrate inside.

All methods of storing apples in bags are based on the principle of effective concentration of carbon dioxide. Since apples remain “alive” for a long time, that is, they breathe and emit carbon dioxide, after some time the optimal concentration of carbon dioxide is established in the hermetically sealed bag, which allows the metabolic processes in the fruit to slow down, thereby increasing their shelf life. By the way, apples packed in plastic can then be placed in a large travel suitcase, closed and placed in a cool place.

Recyclable plastic boxes as winter shelter

Shelter for seedlings and cold-resistant flowers. The box is turned over and the plant is covered. The top is covered with agrofibre, covered with sawdust or covered with earth. They also use spruce branches, grass, and branches. Nothing is placed inside the box. There is an air layer above the plant; it does not dry out.

It’s better not to put it inside, cover it outside

Snow retention on strawberries. The boxes are placed upside down in the beds, trap snow, and prevent the appearance of an ice crust and damping off.

Processing apples before storage

There are several options for treating the surface of apples before storing them for long-term storage, but they are not suitable for everyone. Because they involve smearing, dipping, soaking and even irradiating apples with ultraviolet light. Not every gardener will decide on such experiments, but... what if there are brave souls?

Before placing in prepared containers, apples are greased with glycerin.
Each apple is dipped into an alcohol solution of propolis for a couple of seconds (100 grams of propolis per 0.5 liter of alcohol) and then dried.
Apples are kept for a minute in a 2% solution of calcium chloride (sold in pharmacies).
Before storage, each apple can be dipped in a 5% salicylic acid solution.
Apples are immersed in melted paraffin or beeswax, and after drying, they are stored in boxes with sawdust.
To prevent putrefactive diseases, apples laid out in one layer should be kept under a bactericidal ultraviolet lamp at a distance of 1.5 meters for half an hour. Then turn it over and irradiate the other side.

Construction of a fruit storage facility

Often, arched frameless hangars with a shallow foundation are built for fruit storage. They are almost 2 times cheaper than capital frame structures.

The hangar is made of thin sheet profiled metal, bent into an arc. The arches are secured to the foundation with anchor bolts or welding. Install end walls. The premises will be equipped with gates and a ventilation system. This method of construction has been known since 1949. Some self-supporting structures built 50 years ago are still standing. For the strength of the building, it is important to follow the technology of production and installation of arches and use high-quality building materials.

General rules for storing apples in the refrigerator

It is quite convenient to store apples in the refrigerator if you have a large one and have quite a few compartments.

In addition, there are general rules for storing apples in the refrigerator, which include:

Apples should be refrigerated no later than 24 hours after harvesting. If you purchased apples at the store, you should immediately put them in the refrigerator.
Under no circumstances should you wash apples before storing.
For comfortable and isolated storage, apples should be packed in plastic wrap, 1 to 5 kilograms in one bag. Each bag must have holes so that the apples can breathe; if this is not done, the apples will rot.
You should only pack apples of one variety in one bag; under no circumstances should you mix apples of different varieties and ripening periods.
You can put apples in special trays or small boxes. This way they are preserved very well.
Apples are best preserved in the coldest compartments of the refrigerator, where the temperature is 1 - 3 degrees with an optimal air humidity of 85-90%.
If you are going to store apples for a long time, then before storing them you need to do heat treatment at temperatures up to 30 degrees for 3-4 days. This is done in order to remove ethylene from apple tissue. This way, apples will be stored better and will not emit dangerous ethylene.

Storing apples in the refrigerator is very practical and beneficial, and when you have a lot of apples, then you need to use other storage methods. This is the case if there is no very large refrigerator. If you adhere to the above rules for storing apples, then you will not have any problems storing these wonderful fruits.

How to choose storage technology for the apple variety?

Each apple variety requires its own temperature, humidity and gas composition. Therefore, the technology is being torn apart, focusing on pomological varieties.

It is important to determine whether storage will be short-term or long-term. If fruits are to be processed soon, they are placed in a fruit storage facility with general ventilation. There is no need to build expensive CGS cameras. Supply and exhaust ventilation is installed in the room, which supplies fresh air and removes waste products.

If you plan to sell fresh apples in winter, spring, early summer, then it is better to choose a chamber with an RGS. 3-4 months after harvest, the price of the fruit increases sharply, and well-equipped storage facilities will pay for themselves.

To the point

Goodies from Sofia Tolstoy, wife of Leo Tolstoy

A book of recipes from the family of a Russian writer is very popular on the Internet. His wife Sophia ran the household zealously, but the table was always rich and satisfying. A vegetarian, Tolstoy still loved tasty things. Here are a few recipes for apples, of which there were many ripening apples at the Tolstoy estate.

Apple scones . Cut 10 Antonov apples into pieces and simmer them in a saucepan until they become soft. Then rub them through a sieve. Put the pureed apples back into the pan and add one pound of sugar (410 grams) there, add the zest cut into thin pieces and stir it all with a spatula until it comes away from the pan. Place on an iron sheet (now you can use a Teflon sheet so that it does not stick to the baking sheet) and spread evenly to half a finger thickness. Cool and cut into flat cakes.
Apple cream . 2 cups baked apples, 2 cups sugar, 1 egg. Spoon of gelatin. Vanilla – 1 piece. Take two glasses of baked mashed Antonov apples, two cups of fine sugar and beat one egg white thoroughly. Boil gelatin and add a piece of vanilla. Beat all this into apples with sugar and pour into molds.
Pastila Tolstoy . Bake ½ measure of apples (about 10 kg) on a sheet, rub through a sieve, and place on ice. The next day, add 2 ½ pounds of sugar (1.1 kg) and 10 whites, which first “beat with a paddle in a tub until the whole mass turns white and rises” - that is, beat the whites with sugar, and then mix with mashed baked apples until smooth. Place in paper boxes (i.e. molds) and place on sheets in the oven until ready. You can bake in layers.

Video

In the warm season, many owners of private plots make titanic efforts to grow a good harvest that provides their family with food in the winter. Therefore, it is so important to preserve fruits, berries, and vegetables throughout the year. This is the function that the vegetable storage facility performs. To service 1-2 small areas, it is quite possible to do it yourself.

DIY vegetable storage

Contents of step-by-step instructions:

What is a vegetable store

A vegetable storage facility is a small reservoir in which certain conditions must be maintained to preserve the products. Each crop has its own limits on the environmental parameters in the cellar, but on average, the climate in the vegetable storage should correspond to the indicators described below.

What is a vegetable store

Humidity can range from 75 to 95%. Apples and pears require the highest humidity; for garlic this figure should not exceed 80%.
The temperature should not fall below -1, but also not rise above +5, optimally - from 1 to 3 degrees Celsius.

Humidity and temperature conditions can be regulated, including good ventilation. Therefore, special attention is paid to arranging a vegetable storage facility with ventilation.

Vegetable storage options

According to the method of arrangement, all vegetable storage facilities can be divided into 2 types.

In-ground vegetable storage facilities are more popular among owners of private houses, since such premises have natural thermal insulation and no serious effort is required to maintain optimal conditions in them. But in conditions of close groundwater, it is impossible to equip such a cellar.
An above-ground vegetable storage facility is quicker to build, but its construction requires the work of professionals and significant material costs. After all, creating conditions to maintain the climate in it is much more difficult.

Let's look at the instructions for the simplest room for storing crops - a deep cellar.

How to choose equipment for creating a WGS?

An insulated frameless hangar can be turned into a fruit storage facility if you install sealed gates, a nitrogen generator, equipment for removing excess carbon dioxide and oxygen, and an ethylene adsorber. It is necessary to equip the chamber with sensors, a cooling system and air humidification/dehumidification.

Three types of equipment for regulating the gas environment are common:

CA (controlled atmosphere). The simplest option for equipping an RGS camera. Here oxygen is maintained at a level of 2.5...4%, CO2 - 3...5%;
ULO (ultra-low oxygen). Oxygen 1…2.5%, carbon dioxide adsorber and nitrogen generator installed;
DCA (Dynamic Controlled Atmosphere). The most effective, but expensive camera equipment. A control system is provided to maintain a minimum oxygen concentration. The composition of the atmosphere changes as quickly and accurately as possible.

The equipment is selected based on the volume of fruit storage and the specifics of the varieties. Pay attention to the energy consumption class. The higher it is, the more economically energy will be consumed. The installation method and ease of control are taken into account.

At the initial stage of doing business, you can build a sealed chamber, equipping it only with ventilation. And over time, purchase the necessary equipment to maintain an optimal atmosphere.

DIY in-ground vegetable storage

The most common are cellars built to save space and ease of use under a house or garage. In this case, it is necessary to take care of the arrangement of the vegetable storage at the stage of construction of the building.

In any case, for the cellar you must first choose the right place on the site. It is better to arrange a vegetable storage area on an elevated and dry area.

The best soil is sand. If there is only clay soil on the site, then to protect the vegetable storehouse and the products in it from atmospheric moisture, drainage is arranged around the cellar. An important condition when constructing a storage tank is the level of groundwater, which must be at least 50 cm below the bottom of the vegetable storage.

It is also important that there are no trees or bushes nearby. Firstly, during the preparation of the pit, the root system can be damaged. Secondly, the roots themselves can eventually destroy the walls of the cellar.

In addition, you need to decide on the type of entrance to the cellar. If we are talking about storage under the house or with a cellar, then a simple hatch is often provided in the ceiling. A separate cellar, as well as a vegetable storage area under the garage, usually has a smooth descent with steps and a door.

Cellar ventilation

For small cellars, the simplest ventilation is used, based on the process of circulating air flows during the heating process. The system includes 2 pipes; you can use regular pipes for a plastic riser. The lower end of one pipe should be no more than half a meter above the floor. This is the supply air duct. Cool air enters it from outside.

The edge of the second pipe should not reach the ceiling by only 150 mm. The upper sections of pipes are installed 0.3 m above the cellar roof, and rain protection is installed on them. In addition, nets are placed on the ends of the pipes to prevent insects from entering the cellar.

Maintenance and operation of vegetable storage

In order for the cellar to serve you long enough, keeping food fresh, you must comply with several conditions for its operation.

At the end of each winter, it is necessary to remove all remnants of last year's harvest from the cellar and sweep the floors.
Before the storage period begins, the cellar must be ventilated and checked for the presence of fungi.
If in warm weather the humidity in the cellar increases, the exhaust pipe is lengthened, increasing ventilation.
During periods of frost, the supply and exhaust pipes are closed with dampers. When the weather warms up, the dampers are removed.