Annex C: Fruit ripeness#

Here are some tips for determining whether your fruit is ready to be harvested. In general, the best way to determine a fruit’s maturity is to taste it!

Apples#

  • Should be harvested at maturity.

  • Should be harvested by a simple rotation of the fruit: if the stem easily detaches from the branch, it’s ready to be picked.

  • You can also taste the apple to see if it’s ripe. Even naturally sour apples lose their bitterness when they’re ripe.

  • Inspecting the apple’s seeds is another good indication of fruit maturity: if they’re a deep brown, the apple is definitely ripe (but do taste it to make sure that it’s not bitter).

Saskatoon Berries#

  • Should be harvested at maturity.

  • Should be completely purple/violet, but not too soft. If they’re red, they’re not ready yet.

Cherries#

  • Should be harvested at maturity.

  • Should be juicy and sweet yet firm. Note that sour cherries are sour even at maturity, hence the name!

  • Sweet cherries should be dark red when harvested. Sour cherries should be a bright red when harvested.

  • Trust your taste buds!

Plums#

  • Should be harvested at maturity.

  • Should be sweet but not too firm.

  • Note that in some trees, the plums exposed to more sunlight ripen faster, so parts of the tree will be ready to harvest and other parts not. With this in mind, when planning a plum pick, try to choose a time during which the largest quantity of fruit will be ready for harvest (if doing two picks is not an option).

  • Plums enlarge quite a bit right before they hit maturity. If you notice that the plums are starting to look bigger, it’s time to organize the pick!

Grapes#

  • Should be harvested at maturity.

  • Should be firm but not too firm, juicy, and sweet. When they start looking wrinkly, that means you missed the ideal picking time.

Pears#

  • Should be harvested when they’re still green (i.e. not mature) and firm. They should have a green-yellow hue.

  • After harvesting, pears need to be left to mature for a few days. Winter pears (Bosc, Anjou) should be refrigerated at least 30 days after being picked in order to ripen properly.

  • Do not leave the pears to mature on the tree, as this tends to give them a grainy texture and also causes them to rot at the core once stored. Pears ripen better once they have been harvested!

  • Conversely, if you harvest pears too soon, they might not be able to completely develop their normal flavour.

  • A pear that’s ready to harvest is supple. Cut one in half to verify the consistency inside: if it’s as hard as wood, it’s not ready. There should be a slight suppleness, but not too much.

  • Should be harvested by a simple rotation of the fruit: if the stem easily detaches from the branch, it should be ripe.

  • Like with apples, seeds are a good indication of fruit maturity: if they’re deep brown, the fruit is most likely ripe.