How to pick fresh fruit.

Ahhh, summer. Long, hot, lazy days and an abundance of luscious, fresh fruit. So how come fruit flies get to the bowl of peaches before you do? Or the melon becomes mealy instead of ripe?

We all have our favorite ways to eat our favorite fruits. One person's wonderfully ripe banana is only fit for another person's banana bread. Some folks will only buy fruit when it's at the height of ripeness. Others like to let it ripen at home.

Even so, here are some more-or-less universal tips on how to pick and store fresh fruit from three experts: the U.S. Department of Agriculture and the U.S. and Canadian Produce Marketing Associations.

Apples

Look For: Firm, well-colored fruit.

Avoid: Bruised fruit or fruit that yields to slight pressure on the skin. Hard tan or brown areas may not seriously affect the taste.

At Home: Refrigerate. Apples soften ten times faster at room temperature.

Apricots

Look For: Plump and juicy-looking fruit with a uniform, golden-orange color. Ripe apricots yield to gentle pressure on the skin.

Avoid: Dull-looking, soft, or mushy fruit (it's overripe) and very firm, pale yellow, or greenish-yellow fruit (it's underripe).

At Home: Ripen in a paper bag, then refrigerate. (Many fruits release ethylene gas, which speeds up the ripening process. Keeping them in a bag traps the gas.) Ripe apricots keep about one week.

Bananas

Look For: Fruit that is firm, bright, and free of bruises or other injuries. Tastes vary, but for most people, bananas taste best when the skin is specked with brown. Bananas with green tips or with practically no yellow color have not developed their full flavor.

Avoid: Bruised fruit, discolored skins, or a dull, grayish, aged appearance (which means the fruit has been exposed to cold and won't ripen properly).

At Home: Store bananas at room temperature. Freeze ripe bananas (peel them first) and use them later in baking or in smoothies.

Blueberries

Look For: Dark blue fruit with a silvery cast. Also, berries that are plump, firm, the same size, dry, and free of stems or leaves.

Avoid: Soft, mushy, moldy, or leaking berries.

At Home: Refrigerate in a shallow container (you can use the one in which they came). Wash just before serving.

Cantaloupes

Look For: A thick, coarse, corky netting covering the skin. A ripe cantaloupe has a yellowish rind, a cantaloupe smell, and yields slightly to light thumb pressure on the non-stem end. Small bruises normally don't hurt the fruit.

Avoid: A strong yellow-colored rind, a softening over the entire rind, or mold growth, particularly in the stem scar.

At Home: If the cantaloupe isn't ready to eat, store it at room temperature. The longer it sits out, the softer and juicier it becomes. Refrigerate cut melon.

Cherries

Look For: A very dark color and bright, glossy, plump-looking surfaces. For the richest flavor, most varieties should range from deep maroon or mahogany red to black.

Avoid: Shriveled fruit, soft, leaking flesh, brown discoloration, mold, and a generally dull look. Cherries are normally dark in color, so decay areas are often inconspicuous.

At Home: Refrigerate. Cherries are highly perishable. The fruit doesn't ripen after harvest, so eat as soon as possible. Wash just before serving.

Grapefruit

Look For: Firm fruit that is heavy for its size. Smooth, thin-skinned fruits have more juice than coarse-skinned ones. If a grapefruit is pointed at the stem end, it is likely to be thick-skinned. Skin defects such as scales, scars, thorn scratches, or discoloration usually do not affect the taste.

Avoid: Soft, water-soaked areas, lack of bright color, and soft, tender peel that breaks easily with finger pressure. Rough, ridged, or wrinkled skin can also be a sign of thick skin, pulpiness, and lack of juice.

At Home: If you're going to keep your grapefruit for more than a week, refrigerate it.

Grapes

Look For: Well-colored, plump grapes that are firmly attached to the stem. White or green grapes are sweetest when they have a yellowish cast, with a tinge of amber.

Avoid: Soft, moldy, or wrinkled grapes and grapes with bleached areas around the stem ends.

At Home: Don't let grapes get wet. Wash them just before serving.

Guava 

Look For: Soft green fruit with a fragrant aroma.

Avoid: Hard fruit.

At Home: Ripen at room temperature, then refrigerate. Ripe guavas will keep for only a day or two, but the pulp can be frozen. There's no need to peel guavas. The edible rind is rich in vitamin C. For smoothies and marinades, discard the seeds, then puree the pulp and rind.

Honeydew Melon 

Look For: A soft, velvety texture, slight softening at the blossom end, a faint fruit aroma, and a yellowish-white to creamy rind color.

Avoid: Large, water-soaked, bruised areas are signs of injury. Cuts or punctures in the rind can lead to decay.

At Home: After they've ripened, keep in the refrigerator. They'll last about a week.

Kiwifruit 

Look For: Plump, unwrinkled fruit, either firm or slightly yielding. Kiwifruit is ripe when it gives to the touch but isn't soft. Sometimes the fruit has a "water-stained" exterior. It's normal and doesn't affect the taste. You can eat the skin.

Avoid: Fruit that shows signs of shriveling, mold, or excessive softening.

At Home: Ripen at room temperature. Putting them in a paper bag with a banana or an apple will accelerate ripening. Kiwis will keep for several weeks in the refrigerator.

Lemons

Look For: Heavy and firm fruit with a rich yellow color and reasonably smooth-textured skin with a slight gloss. A pale or greenish-yellow color means very flesh fruit with slightly higher acidity. Coarse or rough skin texture means thick skin and not much juice.

Avoid: Lemons with a darker yellow or dull color, or with hardened or shriveled skin, soft spots, mold, or punctures.

At Home: Store in the refrigerator. If you microwave a whole lemon for ten seconds, it will release more juice. So will applying pressure while rolling it back and forth on the countertop.

Limes 

Look For: Fruit with glossy skin that's heavy and plump for its size.

Avoid: Fruit with dull, dry skin or soft spots, mold, or punctures.

At Home: Limes keep for up to three weeks in the refrigerator.

Mangos

Look For: Plump fruit with smooth skin that has at least begun to color, and a slight softness.

Avoid: Very green, rock-hard, shriveled, or mushy fruit, or fruit with bruises, rot, or large black spots.

At Home: Refrigerate only when completely ripened. Refrigerated mangos last for a day or two.

Nectarines

Look For: Rich color and plumpness, and a slight softening along the "seam"--the ridge that runs down one side of the fruit. Most nectarines are orange-yellow between the red areas, but some varieties are greenish. Hard, tan stains on the skin don't affect the taste.

Avoid: Hard, dull, slightly shriveled, or soft fruit, or fruit with cracked skin.

At Home: Ripen at room temperature in a paper bag, then refrigerate. Bright-looking fruit that's firm to moderately hard will probably ripen within two to three days.

Oranges

Look For: Firm, heavy fruit with fresh, bright-looking skin that is smooth for the variety.

Avoid: Lightweight oranges are likely to lack flesh and juice. Very rough skin texture means thick skin and less flesh. Also avoid dull, dry skin and spongy feel, soft spots on the surface, and discolored, weakened skin at the ends.

At Home: Oranges only keep a week or two unless you refrigerate them. They yield the most juice at room temperature.

Papaya 

Look For: Firm, unblemished fruit whose green color is turning yellow.

Avoid: Solid green or mushy fruit, or fruit with bruises or pebbly skin.

At Home: Ripen in a paper bag at room temperature until softened and golden, then refrigerate.

Peaches

Look For: Fruit that is fairly firm or a little soft. The skin between the red areas should be yellow, or at least creamy. The amount of red blush does not indicate ripeness.

Avoid: Hard fruit with a distinctly green color, which probably won't ripen. Also very soft fruit, large flattened bruises, or any sign of decay. Decay starts as a pale tan spot that expands in a circle and slowly turns darker.

At Home: Ripen in a paper bag at room temperature (peaches will soften and get juicier ... but not sweeter), then refrigerate.

Pears

Look For: Fruit that has begun to soften (that increases the odds that it will ripen properly). Bartletts should be pale yellow to rich yellow, Anjous or Cornices should be light green to yellowish-green, and Boscs should be greenish-yellow to brownish-yellow.

Avoid: Wilted or shriveled pears with dull-appearing skin and slight withering of the flesh near the stem. They won't ripen. Also avoid spots; corky tissue may be underneath.

At Home: Ripen at room temperature in a paper bag. If a pear yields to gentle pressure near the stem and side, it's ready to eat.

Pineapples

Look For: Bright yellow-orange color, fragrant pineapple aroma, and a very slight separation of the eyes (the berry-like fruitlets that run in a spiral pattern on the skin).

Avoid: Fruit with sunken eyes, dull yellowish-green color, a dried look, bruises, soft spots, mold, or an unpleasant vinegary odor.

At Home: As most varieties ripen, the skin's dark green color turns orange and yellow. Some shoppers swear that a pineapple is ripe if you can easily pull out one of its leaves, though most fruit experts say that the method isn't reliable.

Plums

Look For: Plump fruit that is fairly firm to slightly soft.

Avoid: Fruit that is too hard or too soft, or with skin breaks, punctures, or brownish discoloration.

At Home: Ripen at room temperature in a paper bag, then refrigerate.

Raspberries and Boysenberries

Look For: Uniform color. The small cells that make up the berry should be plump and tender but not mushy.

Avoid: Leaky, moldy berries and wet or stained spots on wood or fiber containers.

At Home: Refrigerate in a shallow container (you can use the one in which the berries are sold). Don't wash until you're ready to eat.

Strawberries

Look For: Berries with a full red color and bright luster, firm flesh, and the cap stem still attached. Medium to small strawberries usually taste better than larger ones.

Avoid: Fruit with large uncolored or seedy areas, a shrunken look, or softness or mold, which can spread rapidly from one berry to another.

At Home: Refrigerate. Keep strawberries dry. Wash them just before serving.

Tangerines

Look For: Deep yellow or orange color and a bright luster. Because the skin is loose, tangerines often don't feel firm to the touch.

Avoid: Very pale yellow or greenish fruits, which probably lack flavor (small green areas on otherwise high-colored fruit are okay), punctured skins, or very soft spots.

At Home: Best to refrigerate.

Watermelon 

Look For: Firm, juicy flesh with good red color and dark brown or black seeds (whitish seeds mean the melon is immature). With uncut watermelons, look for a smooth, slightly dull surface. The ends should be filled out and rounded, and the "belly" (the underside that rests on the ground) should have a creamy color.

Avoid: Pale-colored flesh; white streaks; whitish seeds; dry, mealy flesh; or watery, stringy flesh.

At Home: Store in the refrigerator, especially if cut.