Home
growers like you can
become savvy harvesters by
remembering just a few
tips about each crop.
Tomatoes.
Tomatoes should be picked
when they are firm and
have reached full color --
crimson, red, yellow or
other colors depending on
the variety. It's probably
a good idea to pick a
range of ripening tomatoes
every few days and let a
few finish ripening after
picking so you'll always
have fresh, ripe tomatoes
for salads and recipes.
The ripening tomatoes will
have slightly lower
amounts of vitamins and
minerals than the fully
ripe fruits.
Peppers.
Green peppers are picked
and used before full
ripeness. Gauge ripeness
by the size estimate on a
seed packet or in a seed
catalog. Firmness also is
a ripeness indicator. If
the pepper feels as though
it has thin walls, it is
not ripe. When green
peppers are allowed to
ripen, they can turn into
a rainbow of colors
depending on the variety.
If peppers have ripened to
full color, use them
quickly because they have
only a few days of shelf
life at that stage.
Zucchini.
Zucchini tastes best when
harvested at lengths from
6 to 10 inches. Don't let
them grow longer than a
foot. After 8 to 10
inches, zucchini gets
tough and develops more
seeds. Longer zucchini
that escaped your
attention during picking
can be grated, or breaded
and fried.
Cucumbers.
Pickle cucumbers should
not be grown beyond
approximately 4 inches.
Other types, such as some
burpless or Oriental
varieties, can reach
ripeness at nearly 15
inches. The longer
cucumber types are ripe
when they retain a hint of
the ridges and spinyness
associated with immature cucumbers. Think of a
cucumber as a balloon, if
it's inflated to a perfect
smoothness, it's too far
gone.
Eggplant.
Estimate ripeness by
comparing the crop to the
size and shape described
on the seed package or
catalog. The eggplant also
should be shiny and
glossy. The stem and cap
should be mint green or
purple, depending on the
type.
Melons
(muskmelons and cantaloupes). Most
melons are perfectly ripe
when they separate from
the vine easily. A small
tug should be enough.
Other melon types are ripe
when they turn from a
greenish hue to a more
yellow or orange color.
Watermelons.
Each watermelon will have
a pigtailed tendril of
growth near the stem. As
that tendril browns or
dies, look at the
underside of the melon.
The underside should be
slightly yellow. Inside,
the seeds will be deep
brown to black, not light
tan.
Carrots.
Because carrots invest
most of their early growth
into the plant leaves, the
carrot, or root, does not
mature until late summer
or fall. Danvers varieties
should be harvested when
they reach about a 2-inch
diameter. Nantes varieties
should be picked when they
reach 1 inch in diameter.
To check diameter, just
run your finger around the
base of the plant and
uncover the top of the
carrot.
Leaf Lettuce and
Spinach. Although
gardeners can harvest the
entire plant head early to
thin the crop, I recommend
removing and using the
outer leaves of the plant
as you need them. The
plant will keep producing
leaves until a killing
frost. You can harvest
chard and rhubarb the same
way.
Onions. Because
most onions are grown from
sets, which means many of
the plants grow too close
together, it is
recommended you thin out
the plants. Onions are
ready for final storage
harvest when about half
the plant leaves have
turned brown or drooped.
Push the rest of the
leaves over and pick the
onions about a week later.
Leave the onions in the
field to dry for a few
days, then hang them.
Onions forming a seed head
-- the green shoot that
looks like a spear coming
out of the onion -- should
be eaten immediately,
because they won't dry out
adequately for storage.
Snap
(green or wax) Beans.
The key to harvesting snap
beans is to pick them
before the pod shows any
seed development. There
should be no swelling
where you can see the seed
in the bean. Also, the
bean should literally snap
when you break it. If
they're over rippened, the
bean will be rubbery.
Broccoli.
Broccoli plants produce a
large central head
comprised of tightly bound
buds. The head should be
harvested before any hint
of yellowing appears and
before the buds separate.
Some broccoli varieties
will continue to produce
large shoots even after
the central head has been
harvested.
Flat
Edible Pod Peas. These
crops, known as Chinese
peas or snow peas, should
be picked when still flat,
before the pod reveals the
outline of the internal
seeds. It is recommended
that you check the size
description on the seed
packet or catalog as well.
Round Edible Pod Peas.
Also known as snap peas,
these varieties are the
sweetest and most tender
peas. They should be
picked when fully round
and smooth. The color
should be mint green.
English
Peas. The pod should
be shiny and swelled
enough to suggest the
outline of the peas. All
pea varieties should be
cooled immediately after
picking, because their
sugars will turn to starch
under warm conditions.
Happy
harvesting!
