Pick-Your-Own Orchards in the Kansas City Area
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For an opportunity to pick some fresh local apples, consider heading to one of our area apple orchards. Depending on the variety of apple, they could be ready for picking from late August through the first part of November.
To help you decide when to pick your apples, look at the skin color in areas of the stem and at the bottom of the apple. It will turn from an immature green to a light-yellow color. You can also taste a few to see if they have a sweet flavor. If they are not ready to harvest, they will taste starchy or immature.
And finally, as apples mature and starches change to sugars, the flesh changes from very light green to white. When you cut a thin slice and hold it up to the light you can see the difference.
Some options for local apple orchards include:
Cider Hill Family Orchard
3341 N 139th St, Kansas City, KS. Phone: 913-721-2507.
ciderhillfamilyorchard@gmail.com
Pome On The Range Orchards and Winery
2050 Idaho Road, Williamsburg, KS 66095.
Phone: (785)746-5492. Alternate Phone: (785)242-5511.
info@pomeontherange.com
Rees Fruit Farm
2476 K-4 Hwy.
Topeka, KS 66617
(785) 246-3257
(785) 246-1817 (fax)
reesfruitfarm@aol.com
Storing Apples
You can enjoy apples from January to June – with the right conditions. Some apple cultivars can be stored for longer periods than others. Some cultivars will stay in firm, crisp condition for about 6 to 8 months with good storage conditions.
The approximate length of time cultivars will keep well under refrigerated conditions are as follows:
Cultivars
- Wealthy: 60 days
- Paulared: 90 days
- Gala: 120 days
- Jonathan: 120 days
- Grimes Golden: 120 days
- Golden Delicious: 150 days
- Empire:150 days
- Delicious: 160 days
- Braeburn: 180 days
- Idared: 200 days
- Rome Beauty: 220 days
- Winesap: 220 days
- Fuji: 240 days
- Granny Smith: 240 days
- Arkansas Black: 240 days
The condition of the apples and how they are stored will strongly influence the storage period.
Some guidelines to help assure good quality and maximum storage life of apples include:
- Store only the best quality.
- Pick as they are first maturing.
- Avoid skin breaks, disease or insect damage, and bruises on individual fruit.
- Store in a plastic bag to help retain moisture in the apples. The bag should have a few small holes for air exchange. The bags of apples may be stored in boxes to prevent bruising if they must be stacked or moved from time to time.
- Refrigerate at about 35 degrees F. An extra refrigerator works well.
- Sort about every 30 to 40 days to remove fruit that may be beginning to rot.