The best picking time of Luoning apples.

July-September is the best time to pick apples. In northern China, apples bloom from the end of March to April, that is, around Tomb-Sweeping Day every year. Apples will mature in early July, at the latest by the end of September.

The maturity of apple surface color is an important index for picking. For example, the best time to pick red star apples is when the fruit surface changes from light red to purple, when Jonakin turns yellow, and so on.

However, we know that most of the apples planted in China are bagged at present, so the decision of picking time is generally based on the morning and evening of picking bags and the weather after picking bags. For bagged apples, the best picking time is generally concentrated when the color turns pink after bagging.

No matter what kind of apple has its own specific development cycle. This period is usually counted from the time when the flowers are in full bloom to the end when they are picked. For example, early-maturing varieties are generally 60- 100 days, medium-maturing varieties are generally 100- 140 days, and late-maturing varieties are generally 160- 190 days. Take the common Fuji as an example, it takes more than 175- 180 days.

It is generally believed that fruit hardness index is convenient for storage and transportation. For red Fuji, if it is used for short-term storage, the fruit maturity can be very high, and the hardness can reach 5.9-6.7 kg/cm2. If it is used for long-term storage or long-distance transportation, the fruit hardness is higher, generally between 6 and 7.