What are the methods for improving the smoothness of apple fruit skin?

1. Fruit bagging. Fruit bagging is one of the best and most effective technical measures for improving the smoothness of apple fruit skin. Fruit bagging can make the skin smooth and delicate, with bright color, fewer russet spots, and small and few fruit dots, thereby improving the appearance quality of the fruit.

2. Control the amount and proportion of nitrogen fertilizer. When the amount of nitrogen fertilizer is too much, bagged fruit de-greens poorly, the fruit surface is dull and dirty, and red varieties color slowly and lightly; on the contrary, when nitrogen fertilizer is moderate, the background color of the skin is light, the coloring is bright and beautiful, red varieties are more vivid, and fruit russet becomes lighter.

3. Let the fruit hang and grow freely. When the fruit grows as a single fruit hanging freely downward, not close to branches, trunks, leaves, or fruit, branch rubbing, leaf rubbing, water russet, cracking, and the breeding of diseases and pests can be effectively avoided.

4. Use pesticides and foliar fertilizers reasonably. If pesticides and foliar fertilizers are used at improper times or concentrations, they often irritate the fruit surface and make it rough, and may even cause phytotoxicity, affecting the smoothness of the fruit surface and fruit quality traits. One month before harvest, the orchard should stop spraying Bordeaux mixture or thick lime milk, and instead use fungicides with no residue and no residual spots, such as Daconil M-45, Nongkang 120, polyoxin, etc. Spray Meiguoling 800-fold solution at the apple flowering stage, and spray Meiguoling 500-600-fold solution at the bud stage, young fruit stage, fruit enlargement stage, and before harvest, and spray amino acid compound micro-fertilizer 400-fold solution from young fruit to before harvest. Spraying these micro-fertilizers 3-5 times throughout the year can thicken the waxy layer on the fruit surface.

5. Spray fruit surface protectants. Spraying 500-800-fold high-fat film or 200-fold paraffin emulsion, etc., can reduce fruit surface russet spots or skin micro-cracks, and has an obvious effect on improving the appearance quality of apple fruit.

6. Harvest gently, handle gently, and transport gently to prevent mechanical damage to the fruit surface.

7. Wash the fruit. After the fruit is harvested, washing the fruit before grading and packaging can wash off water russet, pesticide spots, and other contaminants attached to the fruit surface, keeping the fruit surface clean and bright.