The apple tree (Malus domestica) is a deciduous tree in the rose family best known for its

sweet, pomaceous fruit, the apple. It is cultivated worldwide as a fruit tree, and is the most
widely grown species in the genus Malus. The tree originated inCentral Asia, where its wild
ancestor, Malus sieversii, is still found today. Apples have been grown for thousands of years
in Asia and Europe, and were brought to North America by European colonists. Apples
have religious and mythologicalsignificance in many cultures, including Norse, Greek and
European Christian traditions.
Apple trees are large if grown from seed, but small if grafted onto roots (rootstock). There are
more than 7,500 known cultivars of apples, resulting in a range of desired characteristics.
Different cultivars are bred for various tastes and uses, includingcooking, eating raw
and cider production. Apples are generally propagated bygrafting, although wild apples grow
readily from seed. Trees and fruit are prone to a number of fungal, bacterial and pest
problems, which can be controlled by a number of organic and non-organic means. In 2010,
the fruit's genome was decoded as part of research on disease control and selective
breeding in apple production.
About 80 million tons of apples were grown worldwide in 2013, and China produced almost
half of this total.[3] The United States is the second-leading producer, with more than 6% of
world production. Turkey is third, followed by Italy, India and Poland. Apples are often eaten
raw, but can also be found in many prepared foods (especially desserts) and drinks. Many
beneficial health effects are thought to result from eating apples; however, two types of
allergies are attributed to various proteins found in the fruit.
Contents
[hide]

1Botanical information
o

1.1Wild ancestors

1.2Genome

2History

3Cultural aspects
o

3.1Germanic paganism

3.2Greek mythology

3.3Christian art

4Cultivars

5Cultivation
o

5.1Breeding

5.2Pollination

5.3Maturation and harvest

5.4Storage

5.5Pests and diseases

6Production

7Nutrition

8Human consumption
o

8.1Popular uses

8.2Organic production

8.3Phytochemicals

8.4Health effects

8.5Allergy

8.6Toxicity of seeds

9Proverbs

10See also

11References

12Further reading

13External links

Botanical information

Blossoms, fruits, and leaves of the apple tree (Malus domestica)

The apple is a deciduous tree, generally standing 1.8 to 4.6 m (6 to 15 ft) tall in cultivation
and up to 39 ft (12 m) in the wild.[4] When cultivated, the size, shape and branch density are
determined by rootstock selection and trimming method. Theleaves are alternately
arranged dark green-colored simple ovals with serrated margins and slightly downy
undersides.[5]
Blossoms are produced in spring simultaneously with the budding of the leaves, and are
produced on spurs and some long shoots. The 3 to 4 cm (1.2 to 1.6 in) flowers are white with
a pink tinge that gradually fades, five petaled, with an inflorescenceconsisting of a cyme with
46 flowers. The central flower of the inflorescence is called the "king bloom"; it opens first,
and can develop a larger fruit.[5][6]
The fruit matures in late summer or autumn, and varieties exist with a wide range of sizes.
Commercial growers aim to produce an apple that is 7.0 to 8.3 cm (2.75 to 3.25 in) in
diameter, due to market preference. Some consumers, especially those in Japan, prefer a
larger apple, while apples below 5.7 cm (2.25 in) are generally used for making juice and
have little fresh market value. The skin of ripe apples is generally red, yellow, green, pink, or
russetted although many bi- or tri-colored varieties may be found. [7] The skin may also be
wholly or partly russeted i.e. rough and brown. The skin is covered in a protective layer
of epicuticular wax,[8] The flesh is generally pale yellowish-white,[7] though pink or yellow flesh
is also known.

Wild ancestors
Main article: Malus sieversii
The original wild ancestor of Malus domestica was Malus sieversii, found growing wild in the
mountains of Central Asia in southern Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, and Xinjiang,

China.[5][9] Cultivation of the species, most likely beginning on the forested flanks of the Tian
Shan mountains, progressed over a long period of time and permitted
secondaryintrogression of genes from other species into the open-pollinated seeds.
Significant exchange with Malus sylvestris, the crabapple, resulted in current populations of
apples being more related to crabapples than to the more morphologically similar
progenitor Malus sieversii. In strains without recent admixture the contribution of the latter
predominates.[10][11][12]

Genome
In 2010, an Italian-led consortium announced they had decoded the complete genome of the
apple in collaboration with horticultural genomicists at Washington State University,[13] using
the Golden delicious variety.[14] It had about 57,000 genes, the highest number of any plant
genome studied to date[15] and more genes than the human genome (about 30,000). [16] This
new understanding of the apple genome will help scientists in identifying genes and gene
variants that contribute to resistance to disease and drought, and other desirable
characteristics. Understanding the genes behind these characteristics will allow scientists to
perform more knowledgeable selective breeding. Decoding the genome also provided proof
that Malus sieversii was the wild ancestor of the domestic applean issue that had been
long-debated in the scientific community.[13]

History

Wild Malus sieversii apple in Kazakhstan

The center of diversity of the genus Malus is in eastern Turkey. The apple tree was perhaps
the earliest tree to be cultivated,[17] and its fruits have been improved through selection over
thousands of years. Alexander the Great is credited with finding dwarfed apples
in Kazakhstan in 328 BCE;[5] those he brought back to Macedonia might have been the
progenitors of dwarfing root stocks. Winter apples, picked in late autumn and stored just
above freezing, have been an important food in Asia and Europe for millennia. [17]
Apples were brought to North America by colonists in the 17th century,[5] and the first apple
orchard on the North American continent was planted in Boston by Reverend William

Blaxton in 1625.[18] The only apples native to North America arecrab apples, which were once
called "common apples".[19] Apple varieties brought as seed from Europe were spread along
Native American trade routes, as well as being cultivated on Colonial farms. An 1845 United
States apples nursery catalogue sold 350 of the "best" varieties, showing the proliferation of
new North American varieties by the early 19th century.[19] In the 20th century, irrigation
projects in Eastern Washington began and allowed the development of the multibillion-dollar
fruit industry, of which the apple is the leading product.[5]
Until the 20th century, farmers stored apples in frostproof cellars during the winter for their
own use or for sale. Improved transportation of fresh apples by train and road replaced the
necessity for storage.[20][21] In the 21st century, long-term storage again came into popularity,
as "controlled atmosphere" facilities were used to keep apples fresh year-round. Controlled
atmosphere facilities use high humidity, low oxygen, and controlled carbon dioxide levels to
maintain fruit freshness.[22][23]

Cultural aspects
Main article: Apple (symbolism)

"Brita as Iduna" (1901) by Carl Larsson

Germanic paganism
In Norse mythology, the goddess Iunn is portrayed in the Prose Edda (written in the 13th
century by Snorri Sturluson) as providing apples to the gods that give them eternal
youthfulness. English scholar H. R. Ellis Davidson links apples to religious practices
in Germanic paganism, from whichNorse paganism developed. She points out that buckets
of apples were found in the Oseberg shipburial site in Norway, and that fruit and nuts (Iunn
having been described as being transformed into a nut in Skldskaparml) have been found
in the early graves of the Germanic peoples in England and elsewhere on the continent of
Europe, which may have had a symbolic meaning, and that nuts are still a recognized
symbol of fertility in southwest England.[24]

Davidson notes a connection between apples and the Vanir, a tribe of gods associated
with fertilityin Norse mythology, citing an instance of eleven "golden apples" being given to
woo the beautifulGerr by Skrnir, who was acting as messenger for the major Vanir
god Freyr in stanzas 19 and 20 of Skrnisml. Davidson also notes a further connection
between fertility and apples in Norse mythology in chapter 2 of the Vlsunga saga when the
major goddess Frigg sends King Rerir an apple after he prays to Odin for a child, Frigg's
messenger (in the guise of a crow) drops the apple in his lap as he sits atop a mound.
[25]

Rerir's wife's consumption of the apple results in a six-year pregnancy and the Caesarean

section birth of their sonthe hero Vlsung.[26]

Further, Davidson points out the "strange" phrase "Apples of Hel" used in an 11th-century
poem by the skald Thorbiorn Brnarson. She states this may imply that the apple was
thought of by Brnarson as the food of the dead. Further, Davidson notes that the potentially
Germanic goddess Nehalennia is sometimes depicted with apples and that parallels exist in
early Irish stories. Davidson asserts that while cultivation of the apple in Northern Europe
extends back to at least the time of the Roman Empire and came to Europe from the Near
East, the native varieties of apple trees growing in Northern Europe are small and bitter.
Davidson concludes that in the figure of Iunn "we must have a dim reflection of an old
symbol: that of the guardian goddess of the life-giving fruit of the other world." [24]

Greek mythology

Heracles with the apple of Hesperides

Apples appear in many religious traditions, often as a mystical or forbidden fruit. One of the
problems identifying apples in religion, mythology and folktales is that the word "apple" was
used as a generic term for all (foreign) fruit, other than berries, including nuts, as late as the
17th century.[27] For instance, in Greek mythology, the Greek hero Heracles, as a part of
his Twelve Labours, was required to travel to the Garden of the Hesperides and pick the
golden apples off the Tree of Life growing at its center.[28][29][30]

The Greek goddess of discord, Eris, became disgruntled after she was excluded from the
wedding of Peleus and Thetis.[31] In retaliation, she tossed a golden apple
inscribed (Kalliste, sometimes transliterated Kallisti, 'For the most beautiful one'),
into the wedding party. Three goddesses claimed the apple: Hera, Athena,
and Aphrodite. Paris of Troy was appointed to select the recipient. After being bribed by both
Hera and Athena, Aphrodite tempted him with the most beautiful woman in the
world, Helen of Sparta. He awarded the apple to Aphrodite, thus indirectly causing the Trojan
War.
The apple was thus considered, in ancient Greece, to be sacred to Aphrodite, and to throw
an apple at someone was to symbolically declare one's love; and similarly, to catch it was to
symbolically show one's acceptance of that love.[32] An epigram claiming authorship by Plato
states:
I throw the apple at you, and if you are willing to love me, take it and share your girlhood with
me; but if your thoughts are what I pray they are not, even then take it, and consider how
short-lived is beauty.
Plato, Epigram VII[33]
Atalanta, also of Greek mythology, raced all her suitors in an attempt to avoid marriage. She
outran all but Hippomenes(also known as Melanion, a name possibly derived from melon the
Greek word for both "apple" and fruit in general),[29] who defeated her by cunning, not speed.
Hippomenes knew that he could not win in a fair race, so he used three golden apples (gifts
of Aphrodite, the goddess of love) to distract Atalanta. It took all three apples and all of his
speed, but Hippomenes was finally successful, winning the race and Atalanta's hand. [28]

Christian art

Adam and Eve by Albrecht Drer(1507), showcasing the apple as a symbol of sin.

Though the forbidden fruit of Eden in the Book of Genesis is not identified, popular Christian
tradition has held that it was an apple that Eve coaxed Adam to share with her.[34] The origin
of the popular identification with a fruit unknown in the Middle East in biblical times is found
in confusion between the Latin words mlum (an apple) and mlum (an evil), each of which
is normally written malum.[35] The tree of the forbidden fruit is called "the tree of the
knowledge of good and evil" in Genesis 2:17, and the Latin for "good and evil" is bonum et
malum.[36]
Renaissance painters may also have been influenced by the story of the golden apples in
the Garden of Hesperides. As a result, in the story of Adam and Eve, the apple became a
symbol for knowledge, immortality, temptation, the fall of man into sin, and sin itself.
The larynx in the human throat has been called Adam's applebecause of a notion that it was
caused by the forbidden fruit remaining in the throat of Adam. [34] The apple as symbol of
sexual seduction has been used to imply human sexuality, possibly in an ironic vein. [34]

Cultivars
Main article: List of apple cultivars

Red and green apples in India

There are more than 7,500 known cultivars of apples.[37] Cultivars vary in their yieldand the
ultimate size of the tree, even when grown on the same rootstock.[38]Different cultivars are
available for temperate and subtropical climates. The UK's National Fruit Collection, which is
the responsibility of the Department of Environment Food and Rural Affairs, includes a
collection of over 2,000 varieties of apple tree in Kent.[39] The University of Reading, which is
responsible for developing the UK national collection database, provides access to search
the national collection. The University of Reading's work is part of the European Cooperative
Programme for Plant Genetic Resources of which there are 38 countries participating in the
Malus/Pyrus work group.[40]
The UK's national fruit collection database contains a wealth of information on the
characteristics and origin of many apples, including alternative names for what is essentially
the same 'genetic' apple variety. Most of these cultivars are bred for eating fresh (dessert

apples), though some are cultivated specifically for cooking (cooking apples) or
producing cider. Cider apples are typically too tart and astringent to eat fresh, but they give
the beverage a rich flavor that dessert apples cannot. [41]
Commercially popular apple cultivars are soft but crisp. Other desired qualities in modern
commercial apple breeding are a colorful skin, absence of russeting, ease of shipping,
lengthy storage ability, high yields, disease resistance, common apple shape, and developed
flavor.[38] Modern apples are generally sweeter than older cultivars, as popular tastes in
apples have varied over time. Most North Americans and Europeans favor sweet, subacid
apples, but tart apples have a strong minority following.[42] Extremely sweet apples with barely
any acid flavor are popular in Asia[42] and especially Indian Subcontinent.[41]
Old cultivars are often oddly shaped, russeted, and have a variety of textures and colors.
Some find them to have a better flavor than modern cultivars,[43] but they may have other
problems which make them commercially unviable from low yield, disease susceptibility, poor
tolerance for storage or transport, or just being the 'wrong' size. A few old cultivars are still
produced on a large scale, but many have been preserved by home gardeners and farmers
that sell directly to local markets. Many unusual and locally important cultivars with their own
unique taste and appearance exist; apple conservation campaigns have sprung up around
the world to preserve such local cultivars from extinction. In the United Kingdom, old cultivars
such as 'Cox's Orange Pippin' and 'Egremont Russet' are still commercially important even
though by modern standards they are low yielding and susceptible to disease. [5]

Cultivation
Breeding
See also: Fruit tree propagation and Malling series

An apple tree in Germany

In the wild, apples grow readily from seeds. However, like most perennial fruits, apples are
ordinarily propagated asexually by grafting. This is because seedling apples are an example
of "extreme heterozygotes", in that rather than inheriting DNA from their parents to create a
new apple with those characteristics, they are instead significantly different from their
parents.[44] Triploid varieties have an additional reproductive barrier in that 3 sets of

chromosomes cannot be divided evenly during meiosis, yielding unequal segregation of the
chromosomes (aneuploids). Even in the case when a triploid plant can produce a seed
(apples are an example), it occurs infrequently, and seedlings rarely survive. [45]
Because apples do not breed true when planted as seeds, grafting is generally used to
produce new apple trees. The rootstock used for the bottom of the graft can be selected to
produce trees of a large variety of sizes, as well as changing the winter hardiness, insect and
disease resistance, and soil preference of the resulting tree. Dwarf rootstocks can be used to
produce very small trees (less than 3.0 m (10 ft) high at maturity), which bear fruit earlier in
their life cycle than full size trees.[46] Dwarf rootstocks for apple trees can be traced as far
back as 300 BC, to the area of Persia and Asia Minor. Alexander the Great sent samples of
dwarf apple trees to Aristotle's Lyceum. Dwarf rootstocks became common by the 15th
century, and later went through several cycles of popularity and decline throughout the world.
[47]

The majority of the rootstocks used today to control size in apples were developed in

England in the early 1900s. The East Malling Research Station conducted extensive
research into rootstocks, and today their rootstocks are given an "M" prefix to designate their
origin. Rootstocks marked with an "MM" prefix are Malling-series varieties later crossed with
trees of the Northern Spy variety in Merton, England.[48]
Most new apple cultivars originate as seedlings, which either arise by chance or are bred by
deliberately crossing cultivars with promising characteristics.[49] The words 'seedling', 'pippin',
and 'kernel' in the name of an apple cultivar suggest that it originated as a seedling. Apples
can also form bud sports (mutations on a single branch). Some bud sports turn out to be
improved strains of the parent cultivar. Some differ sufficiently from the parent tree to be
considered new cultivars.[50]
Since the 1930s, the Excelsior Experiment Station at the University of Minnesota has
introduced a steady progression of important apples that are widely grown, both
commercially and by local orchardists, throughout Minnesota and Wisconsin. Its most
important contributions have included 'Haralson' (which is the most widely cultivated apple in
Minnesota), 'Wealthy', 'Honeygold', and 'Honeycrisp'.
Apples have been acclimatized in Ecuador at very high altitudes, where they provide crops
twice per year because of constant temperate conditions year-round. [51]

Alice

Ananasrenette

Aroma

Discovery

Bramley

Arkansas Black

Fuji

Golden delicious

Goldrenette

Gala

Jonagold

James Grieve

Granny Smith

McIntosh

Yellow Transparent

Pacific rose

Lobo

Sampion (Shampion)

Summerred

Pink Lady

Belle de Boskoop

Red Delicious

Cox Pomona

Pollination
See also: Fruit tree pollination

Apple blossom from an old Ayrshirevariety

Orchard mason bee on apple bloom, British Columbia, Canada

Apples are self-incompatible; they must cross-pollinate to develop fruit. During the flowering
each season, apple growers often utilize pollinators to carry pollen. Honey bees are most
commonly used. Orchard mason bees are also used as supplemental pollinators in
commercial orchards. Bumblebee queens are sometimes present in orchards, but not usually
in enough quantity to be significant pollinators.[50][52]
There are four to seven pollination groups in apples, depending on climate:

Group A Early flowering, 1 to 3 May in England (Gravenstein, Red Astrachan)

Group B 4 to 7 May (Idared, McIntosh)

Group C Mid-season flowering, 8 to 11 May (Granny Smith, Cox's Orange Pippin)

Group D Mid/late season flowering, 12 to 15 May (Golden Delicious, Calville blanc

d'hiver)

Group E Late flowering, 16 to 18 May (Braeburn, Reinette d'Orlans)

Group F 19 to 23 May (Suntan)

Group H 24 to 28 May (Court-Pendu Gris - also called Court-Pendu plat)

One cultivar can be pollinated by a compatible cultivar from the same group or close (A with
A, or A with B, but not A with C or D).[53]
Varieties are sometimes classified by the day of peak bloom in the average 30-day blossom
period, with pollenizers selected from varieties within a 6-day overlap period.

Maturation and harvest

See also: Fruit picking and Fruit tree pruning

Cultivars vary in their yield and the ultimate size of the tree, even when grown on the same
rootstock. Some cultivars, if left unpruned, will grow very large, which allows them to bear
much more fruit, but makes harvesting very difficult. Depending on the tree density (number
of trees planted per unit surface area), mature trees typically bear 40200 kg (88441 lb) of
apples each year, though productivity can be close to zero in poor years. Apples are
harvested using three-point ladders that are designed to fit amongst the branches. Trees
grafted on dwarfing rootstocks will bear about 1080 kg (22176 lb) of fruit per year.[50]
Crops ripen at different times of the year according to the variety of apple. Varieties that yield
their crop in the summer include Gala, Golden Supreme, McIntosh, Transparent, Primate,
Sweet Bough, and Duchess; fall producers include Fuji, Jonagold, Golden Delicious, Red
Delicious, Chenango, Gravenstein, Wealthy, McIntosh, Snow, and Blenheim; winter
producers include Winesap, Granny Smith, King, Wagener, Swayzie, Greening, and Tolman
Sweet.[19]

Storage
Commercially, apples can be stored for some months in controlled-atmosphere chambers to
delay ethylene-induced ripening. Apples are commonly stored in chambers with higher
concentrations of carbon dioxide and high air filtration. This prevents ethylene concentrations
from rising to higher amounts and preventing ripening from occurring too quickly. Ripening
continues when the fruit is removed from storage. [54] For home storage, most varieties of
apple can be held for approximately two weeks when kept at the coolest part of the
refrigerator (i.e. below 5 C). Some types, including theGranny Smith and Fuji, can be stored
up to a year without significant degradation.[55][56]

Pests and diseases

Leaves with significant insect damage

Main article: List of apple diseases

See also: List of Lepidoptera that feed on Malus
Apple trees are susceptible to a number of fungal and bacterial diseases and insect pests.
Many commercial orchards pursue an aggressive program of chemical sprays to maintain

high fruit quality, tree health, and high yields. A trend in orchard management is the use of
organic methods.[citation needed] These prohibit the use of synthetic pesticides, though some older
pesticides are allowed. Organic methods include, for instance, introducing its natural
predator to reduce the population of a particular pest.
A wide range of pests and diseases can affect the plant; three of the more common
diseases/pests are mildew, aphids and apple scab.

Mildew: which is characterized by light grey powdery patches appearing on the

leaves, shoots and flowers, normally in spring. The flowers will turn a creamy yellow
color and will not develop correctly. This can be treated in a manner not dissimilar from
treating Botrytis; eliminating the conditions which caused the disease in the first place
and burning the infected plants are among the recommended actions to take. [57]

Aphids: There are five species of aphids commonly found on apples: apple grain
aphid, rosy apple aphid, apple aphid, spirea aphid and the woolly apple aphid. The aphid
species can be identified by their color, the time of year when they are present and by
differences in the cornicles, which are small paired projections from the rear of aphids.
[57]

Aphids feed on foliage using needle-like mouth parts to suck out plant juices. When

present in high numbers, certain species reduce tree growth and vigor.[58]

Apple scab: Apple scab causes leaves to develop olive-brown spots with a velvety
texture that later turn brown and become cork-like in texture. The disease also affects
the fruit, which also develops similar brown spots with velvety or cork-like textures. Apple
scab is spread through fungus growing in old apple leaves on the ground and spreads
during warm spring weather to infect the new year's growth.[59]

Among the most serious disease problems are fireblight, a bacterial disease;
and Gymnosporangium rust, and black spot, two fungal diseases.[58] Codling moths and apple
maggots are two other pests which affect apple trees. Young apple trees are also prone to
mammal pests like mice and deer, which feed on the soft bark of the trees, especially in
winter.[59]

Production
Main article: List of countries by apple production

Top 10 Apple Producing Countries

(in metric tonnes)
Rank

Country

2010

2011

2012

China

33,263,000

35,985,000

37,000,000

United States

4,214,599

4,275,108

4,110,046

Turkey

2,600,000

2,680,075

2,889,000

Poland

1,877,906

2,493,078

2,877,000

India

1,777,200

2,891,000

2,203,000

Italy

2,204,972

2,411,201

1,991,312

Iran

1,662,430

1,842,972

1,700,000

Chile

1,624,242

1,588,347

1,625,000

Russia

992,000

1,200,000

1,403,000

10

France

1,778,433

1,857,349

1,382,901

60,271,191

65,800,145

63,454,495

World

Source: UN Food & Agriculture Organization [60]

About 63 million tonnes of apples were grown worldwide in 2012, with China producing
almost half of this total. The United States is the second-leading producer, with more than
6% of world production. The largest exporters of apples in 2009 were China, U.S., Turkey,
Poland, Italy, Iran, and India while the biggest importers in the same year were Russia,
Germany, the UK and the Netherlands.[61]
In the United States, more than 60% of all the apples sold commercially are grown
inWashington.[62] Imported apples from New Zealand and other more temperate areas are
competing with U.S. production and increasing each year.[63]
Most of Australia's apple production is for domestic consumption. Imports from New Zealand
had previously been disallowed under quarantine regulations for fireblight from 1921 to 2007.
[64]

Other countries with a significant production

are Brazil, Argentina, Ukraine, Germany and South Africa.

Nutrition
Apples, with skin (edible parts)
Nutritional value per 100 g (3.5 oz)

Energy

218 kJ (52 kcal)

Carbohydrates

13.81 g

Sugars

10.39

Dietary fiber

2.4 g

Fat

0.17 g

Protein

0.26 g

Vitamins
Vitamin A equiv.

(0%)

beta-carotene

3 g

lutein zeaxanthin

(0%)
27 g
29 g

Thiamine (B1)

(1%)

0.017 mg
Riboflavin (B2)

(2%)
0.026 mg

Niacin (B3)

(1%)
0.091 mg

Pantothenic acid (B5)

(1%)
0.061 mg

Vitamin B6

(3%)
0.041 mg

Folate (B9)

(1%)
3 g

Vitamin C

(6%)
4.6 mg

Vitamin E

(1%)
0.18 mg

Vitamin K

(2%)
2.2 g

Minerals
Calcium

(1%)
6 mg

Iron

(1%)
0.12 mg

Magnesium

(1%)
5 mg

Manganese

(2%)
0.035 mg

Phosphorus

(2%)
11 mg

Potassium

(2%)
107 mg

Sodium

(0%)
1 mg

Zinc

(0%)
0.04 mg

Other constituents
Water

85.56 g

Fluoride

3.3 g

Link to Full Nutrient Report of USDA Database entry

Units

g = micrograms mg = milligrams

IU = International units
Percentages are roughly approximated
usingUS recommendations for adults.

A typical apple serving weighs 242 grams and provides 126 calories with a moderate content
of dietary fiber (table).[65] Otherwise, there is generally low content of essential
nutrients (table).

Human consumption

See also: Cooking apple and Cider apple

An apple core, the remainder of an apple that has been mostly eaten

Apples are often eaten raw. The whole fruit including the skin is suitable for human
consumption except for the seeds, which may affect some consumers.[citation needed] The core is
often not eaten and is discarded. Varieties bred for raw consumption are termed dessert
or table apples.
Apples can be canned or juiced. They are milled or pressed to produce apple juice, which
may be drunk unfiltered (called apple cider in North America), or filtered. The juice can
be fermented to make cider (called hard cider in North America), ciderkin, and vinegar.
Through distillation, various alcoholic beverages can be produced, such
as applejack, Calvados,[66] and [Link] seed oil[67] and pectin may also be produced.

Popular uses
Apples are an important ingredient in many desserts, such as apple pie, applecrumble, apple
crisp and apple cake. They are often eaten baked or stewed, and they can also be dried and
eaten or reconstituted (soaked in water, alcohol or some other liquid) for later use. When
cooked, some apple varieties easily form a puree known as apple sauce. Apples are also
made into apple butter and apple jelly. They are also used (cooked) in meat dishes.

In the UK, a toffee apple is a traditional confection made by coating an apple in

hot toffee and allowing it to cool. Similar treats in the U.S. arecandy apples (coated in a
hard shell of crystallized sugar syrup), andcaramel apples, coated with cooled caramel.

Apples are eaten with honey at the Jewish New Year of Rosh Hashanah to symbolize
a sweet new year.[66]

Farms with apple orchards may open them to the public, so consumers may
themselves pick the apples they will purchase.[66]

Sliced apples turn brown with exposure to air due to the conversion of natural phenolic
substances into melanin upon exposure to oxygen.[68] Different cultivars vary in their
propensity to brown after slicing[69] and the genetically engineered Arctic Apples do not brown.
Sliced fruit can be treated with acidulated water to prevent this effect.[68]

Organic production
Organic apples are commonly produced in the United States.[70] Organic production is difficult
in Europe, though a few orchards have done so with commercial success, [70] using diseaseresistant cultivars. A light coating of kaolin, which forms a physical barrier to some pests, also
helps prevent apple sun scalding.[50][70]

Phytochemicals
Apples are a rich source of
various phytochemicals including flavonoids (e.g., catechins,flavanols, and quercetin) and
other phenolic compounds (e.g., epicatechin andprocyanidins)[71] found in the skin, core, and
pulp of the apple;[71] they have unknown health value in humans.[68]
Ideain (cyanidin 3-O-galactoside) is an anthocyanin, a type of pigment, which is found in
some red apple varieties.[72]

Health effects
Preliminary research is investigating whether nutrients and/or phytochemicals in apples may
affect the risk of some types ofcancer.[71][73]

Allergy
One form of apple allergy, often found in northern Europe, is called birch-apple syndrome,
and is found in people who are also allergic to birch pollen.[74] Allergic reactions are triggered
by a protein in apples that is similar to birch pollen, and people affected by this protein can
also develop allergies to other fruits, nuts, and vegetables. Reactions, which entail oral
allergy syndrome (OAS), generally involve itching and inflammation of the mouth and throat,
[74]

but in rare cases can also include life-threatening anaphylaxis.[75] This reaction only occurs

when raw fruit is consumedthe allergen is neutralized in the cooking process. The variety
of apple, maturity and storage conditions can change the amount of allergen present in
individual fruits. Long storage times can increase the amount of proteins that cause birchapple syndrome.[74]

Different kinds of apple cultivars in a wholesale food market

In other areas, such as the Mediterranean, some individuals have adverse reactions to
apples because of their similarity to peaches.[74] This form of apple allergy also includes OAS,
but often has more severe symptoms, such as vomiting, abdominal pain and urticaria, and
can be life-threatening. Individuals with this form of allergy can also develop reactions to
other fruits and nuts. Cooking does not break down the protein causing this particular
reaction, so affected individuals can eat neither raw nor cooked apples. Freshly harvested,
over-ripe fruits tend to have the highest levels of the protein that causes this reaction. [74]
Breeding efforts have yet to produce a hypoallergenic fruit suitable for either of the two forms
of apple allergy.[74]

Toxicity of seeds
The seeds of apples contain small amounts of amygdalin, a sugar and cyanide compound
known as a cyanogenic glycoside. Ingesting small amounts of apple seeds will cause no ill
effects, but in extremely large doses can cause adverse reactions. There is only one known
case of fatal cyanide poisoning from apple seeds; in this case the individual chewed and
swallowed one cup of seeds. It may take several hours before the poison takes effect, as
cyanogenic glycosides must behydrolyzed before the cyanide ion is released.[76]

Proverbs

An apple's stem end, side, and interior

The proverb "An apple a day keeps the doctor away", addressing the health effects of the
fruit, dates from 19th century Wales according to Caroline Taggart, author of An Apple a
Day: Old-Fashioned Proverbs and Why They Still Work. The original phrase, Taggart said,
was, Eat an apple on going to bed, and youll keep the doctor from earning his bread. In
the 19th century and early 20th, the phrase evolved to an apple a day, no doctor to pay and

an apple a days sends the doctor away, while the phrasing now commonly used was first
recorded in 1922.[77]