[Jamie Butterworth]

...when apples and pears are ready, ive just picked a few to try them but they taste a bit tart but the pips are brown, could they just be cookers?

[sunshineband]

If the pips are brown the fruit is ripe 

Some apples are just very sour, and are best used as cookers I think.

Pears though -- if their pips are brwon they should be edible, unless they are also a cooking variety. if so, have alook in the recipe section as there is a great pickled pear recipe there, and one for mulled pears too 

[mumofstig]

Pears are usually left on the trees much later than apples, if they are eating varieties, and even then many need storing for a few weeks before they start to soften.

[paintedlady]

I usually leave my conference pears until they start dropping off, then pick the lot all at once.  It is usually quite late in the year (Octoberish) whereas my neighbour's Williams type pear should be dropping anytime soon (about the same time the elderberries are ready for harvesting)

Apples - Discovery already harvested, but most others not until mid-September till late October.

[Jamie Butterworth]

Thanks for the advice, so i picked a load of apples, some to stew ad cook and the others to just eat

Do they both store relativley well, or would i need to cook them to store them?

[paintedlady]

it depends on the variety of apple - some are good storers, others not.  When storing, you really need to ensure they are totally blemish free ... the slightest bruise or damage and it will quickly go rotten, taking the whole batch stored with it at the same time 

Another way to preserve apples besides cooking is drying - I peel, core and slice the apples into rings and then dry them in a dehydrator until crispy (about 8-12 hours depending on thickness) then store in air tight bags.  Sometimes when I cook a stew, curry or soup, I'll break up a couple of rings and pop them in and they plump up nicely    You don't need a dehydrator to dry though they are more convenient - spread the rings onto racking and leave in a warm (not hot) oven to dry

[shokkyy]

And they freeze well too. I've just finished using up last year's apples from my freezer.

[Jamie Butterworth]

Painted lady - I have been thinking about drying some, i will probably give that a go

shokky - Do i freeze the apples whole or chop them or stew them first?

[shokkyy]

Painted lady - I have been thinking about drying some, i will probably give that a go

shokky - Do i freeze the apples whole or chop them or stew them first?

I peel and core and cut them into wedges for freezing. I don't stew or blanch and have never had problems with them, but a lot of people do like to blanch them before freezing. You can also stew them up into apple sauce or just stewed apple for pie fillings, if you want to. It really depends how you want to use them later on. I like to do wedges cos that gives me more options, I can use the wedges as is for an apple tray bake or I can bake them in a pie or crumble. I also like to make some apple and blackberry jam, cos that's a luvly jam.

I've had to pick my apples early this year, before they were fully ripe, because they were under attack from wasps. That means they'll be too sour for eating but they'll still be fine for cooking with. Have you ever tried making apple and pear pie, with a spot of honey? That's a luvly combination too.