With Labour day behind us and Thanksgiving fast approaching my mind has turned to thoughts of Fall; even though it is technically not here yet. The fruit that says Fall tio me is apples.
Here is some info on apples.
Historically apples originated in Central Asia and their wild ancestors can still be found there
Biological Apples are the fruit of the deciduous tree Malus domestica. Apples are part of the rose family. There are over 7000 varieties of apples grown in the world although not all are produced commercially. Apples do not breed true from seed, which means if you were to save an apple seed and plant it, it would not produce the same variety from which it came. Commercial apple production is based on grafting the cultivar we want to eat onto a rootstock. Different types of apples are used for different end uses. An apple that is best for cider is not usually the best for fresh eating. Apples are self-incompatible; they must cross-pollinate to develop fruit. An average apple tree will produce 20 bushels of apples A bushel of apples weights about 42 pounds.
It takes:
Two pounds of apples to make a pie. Four apples to make a glass of apple juice. 36 apples to create one gallon of apple cider.
Nutritionally Apples are free of fat, sodium and cholesterol. They are approximately 80 calories and have 5 grams of fiber but if you peel your apple you lose most of the fibre.
The only apples native to north America are crab apples.
In Ontario there are over 15 000 acres of apples in over 15 varieties. The top five varieties in Ontario are McIntosh, Gala, Honeycrisp, Red Delicious, and Empire
Total world production of apples is approx. 83 million metric tonnes and half of this is produced in China
The apple genome has 57 ,000 genes which is more than any plant studied so far and more than the human genome (which was approximately 30,000 genes)
Some of the many ways to eat apples include apple pie, apple crisp, apple cake, apple sauce (which you can also use to make apple sauce cake), apple butter, apple jelly, candy apples and caramel apples
Apples can also be drank: apple juice, apple cider (both non-alcoholic and alcoholic , called hard cider)
Our local apple producers have many varieties and many delicious apple products for you to enjoy. Make sure you get some and remember “ an apple a day keeps the doctor away”
Chris White lives in former Harwich township next door to where he grew up. Chris has been employed in Agri Business for 20 years. He is passionate about food and rural communities and agriculture. He can be reached at white.christopherdavid@gmail.com
“Remember that here in Chatham-Kent ‘We Grow for the World’. Check out our community’s agriculture website at: wegrowfortheworld.com”
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