One of my most asked questions is “How do I know when apples/plums/ pears are ripe?” I remember wondering that too. The realization that harvesting required as much knowledge as growing, dawned the day I harvested a whole tree of apples in a rush of excitement because they were red. What a let-down when I bit into one … sour … duh! They weren’t ripe yet. https://www.motherearthliving.com/in-the-garden/testing-apples-for-ripeness-a-super-helpful-calendar-zb0z1909