Apple tips and trivia
Apple tips and trivia
Pomology is the science of apple growing. Apple the fruit, the hardiest and most widely cultivated of all tree fruits, are members of the Rose family.
The number five is important in the world of apples, and not just because apple is a five-letter word: Apple blossoms typically form in clusters of five … an apple blossom has five petals … Red Delicious apples usually have five bumps (lobes) on the base of the apple … The “star” you see when you cut an apple in half is due to the fruit’s five seed cavities. Each cavity has the potential for 2 seeds, thus 10 seeds per apple are the norm.
Folk hero Johnny Appleseed (John Chapman) did indeed spread the cultivation of apples in the United States. He knew enough about apples, however, so that he didn’t distribute seeds, because apples do not grow true from seeds. Instead, he established nurseries in Pennsylvania, Indiana and Ohio.
To keep potatoes fresh and prevent sprouting, put an apple in the bag.
In ancient Greece, tossing an apple to a girl was a traditional proposal of marriage; catching it was acceptance.
The game of apple-bobbing began as a Celtic New Year’s tradition for trying to determine one’s future spouse.
Avoid washing apples before storing them. Water absorbs through the skin of an apple and speeds up deterioration.
Eat larger apples first, smaller apples store better.
Store apples at a constant temperature – refrigerator temperature is good. Apples can be stored in a perforated plastic bag or in the fruit drawer of the refrigerator, where they will keep for a few weeks.
The largest apple picked weighed three pounds.
88% of the thousands of varieties of apple the fruit that were grown in the early 1900s, no longer exist.
Apples are fat, sodium, and cholesterol free.
Don’t peel your apple! Two-thirds of the fiber and many of the antioxidants are found in the peel.
You need two apple trees growing near each other to have successful pollination. Apple trees take four to six years to produce their first fruit and they can live for hundreds of years.
China is the leading producer of apples with over 1.2 billion bushels grown in 2001.
There are 7,500 varieties of apples grown throughout the world.
25 percent of an apple’s volume is air. That is why they float.
It takes the energy from 50 leaves to produce one apple.
Three medium-sized apples weigh approximately one pound.
One pound of apples, cored and sliced, measures about 4 1/2 cups.
Purchase about 2 pounds of whole apples for a 9-inch pie.
One large apple, cored and processed through a food grinder or processor, makes about 1 cup of ground apple.
It takes about 36 apples to create one gallon of apple cider.
