In article m, jayjay
writes
Is there anyway you can make eating apples sweeter? or is it a daft
question? Should I have given them loads of water earlier on

We've got loads of apples and this year probably due to the lovely
summer we've had here in Manchester, they're really rosy red, look
lovely but they're a bit tarty tasting - they don't look like baking
apples so they must be eaters - don't know what kind they are - the
tree came with the garden - shall I leave them on the tree a bit
longer?

It all depends on the variety. Some are ripe in august and tend to last
only a couple of weeks. Others ripen later and tend to keep longer -
some are picked in October but continue ripening in store for eating
Dec-March.

There are many varieties of eating apple all with their different
tastes, some much sharper in taste than others.

There again, cookers aren't all one variety (though the cookers in the
shops are almost always just one variety, Bramley), and just because
they are red doesn't mean to say they are not cookers.

If the apples part readily from the tree when you lift them, they are
ready to pick. If not, leave them a bit longer, but I don't leave mine
beyond the first frosts.

Experiment with them - try cooking a few, eat some now but leave some to
see if they get less tart. Try slicing them raw and eating with yogurt -
gets rid of some of the tartness - or, if desperate, use the syrup from
a jar of ginger. Ripeness isn't just a matter of the red looking red -
with Worcesters, for example, the green goes from a cold looking green
to a green with yellow tones - though Allingtons Pippins remain cool
green - get to know your own apple! :-)

--
Kay Easton

Edward's earthworm page:
http://www.scarboro.demon.co.uk/edward/index.htm