"sparky" wrote:

I have a cox apple tree which crops well I pick the apples when they are
ripe and wrap them individually and store them in the dry

After about 4 - 6 weeks they become a bit spongy

The ones I buy in the shops now are firm & in perfect condition

Does anyone know what I'm doing wrong ?

Yep. What you're doing wrong is not sousing them in fungicides,
insecticides, selective herbicides and any other -icides you can think
of, then failing to pick them when they're still underripe, not dipping
them in synthetic-chemical-containing waxes, storing them somewhere
other than a commercial cold store, then declining to force-ripen them
using ethylene gas and finally keeping them in a non-temperature-and-
humidity-controlled area like a fruit bowl.

Hope this helps. ;-)

In other words, what's happening to your apples is perfectly normal --
unlike just about everything inflicted upon them (and you, of course) by
the commercial fruit growing concerns and supermarkets.

Pick them slightly less than ripe, and store them somewhere as cool as
possible. Otherwise, you're pretty much doing the right thing anyway.


Jon
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