Harvesting Time Tips
For the Freshest Vegetables
BEANS
If you plant in mid- to late spring, beans continue to set through most of the summer if you keep picking them. For best flavor, pick them when they are thinner than a pencil.
— Tip: For variety, harvest some immature, or baby, beans and add them to salads. They have a slightly different flavor when they’re young.
BROCCOLI
Don’t wait for the broccoli in your garden to get as big as the ones you see at the grocery store to pick them; home-grown plants rarely reach that size. Cut the primary crown (where the individual heads come together) when it’s about 4 inches across, before you see any yellow flowers!
— Tip: Give your broccoli an extra dose of plant food and a crop of new flower heads will start to form where the leaves join the main stem.
CARROTS
Carrots are fully ripe when their shoulders reach up out of the ground and the leaves turn a rich, darker green than they were during the growing season.
–Tip: If you get impatient, you can harvest carrots as soon as they’re large enough to eat. Plant extra so you can harvest baby carrots during the growing season while you wait for them to fully mature.
CORN
If you grow newer corn hybrids, they’ll hold their flavor for a week or maybe more. But regardless of the type, it’s best to wait until the silks at the ear tips turn brown. Feel the ears and make sure they’re full and solid.
–Tip: If you’re not sure, peel back the shuck and pierce a kernel with your fingernail. If the juice looks milky, your corn is ready. If the juice is clear, give the corn a little more time.
MELONS
Watch for cantaloupes to be ripe when they bear a yellowish color on the bottom of the fruit. Look for a brown line around where the stem attaches to the fruit. For watermelons, the best indicators are that the curly tendrils closest to the fruit turn brown and dry, the fruit goes from shiny to dull, and when the bottom of the watermelon (where it sits on the soil) goes from light green to yellowish.
OKRA
Okra matures fast — harvest the pods about four days after the flowers close. Pick the pods before they become tough; this is usually when they’re about 4 inches long.
— Tip: Cut off any old, over-mature pods. If you leave them on, your okra won’t
ONIONS
One good indicator that your onions are ready is when the foliage topples over. Dig the bulbs and store them in a dry place to cure for at least a week.
— Tip: If your onions bloom, harvest the blooms and use them in salads for extra flavor.
PEAS
It’s best to pick them early; if they’re left a couple of days too long, they’ll go from sweet to starchy. Gather flat-pod snow peas when you see a hint of peas forming inside. Let snap peas plump up a bit before picking. Harvest shell peas before the pods have a chance to turn waxy.
— Tip: Like beans, you can harvest peas when they’re still young and immature. They’re also great in salad.
SWEET PEPPERS
Peppers are more flavorful — and nutritious — if you allow them to ripen beyond the green stage. Most bell peppers will turn red, orange, yellow, chocolate-brown, or purple when fully ripe.
— Tip: Like tomatoes, peppers will continue to ripen after they’re harvested.
HOT PEPPERS
Like sweet peppers, the hot varieties will have the best flavor if you let them ripen fully. They ripen best at warm temperatures — so be patient during periods of cool weather and watch them carefully during hot spells.
— Tip: Wear gloves and wash your hands after handling hot peppers; the hot oils can irritate your eyes, nose, or mouth if the oils rub on them.
POTATOES
Don’t worry if you can’t wait for your potatoes to ripen; sneak a few spuds as they develop. Just feel around the top inch or so of the soil and gather the small, young potatoes. The tubers are fully ripe after the plants bloom and start to turn brown and die back.
— Tip: Too much sun on the potato skins will cause them to become bitter and distasteful. Make sure your potatoes are mulched well and brought inside promptly after harvesting.
SALAD GREENS
Most salad greens are a great “cut and come again” vegetable. When they’re about 4 inches tall, cut the tops of the leaves off and enjoy them in your salads. The plants will grow a new set of leaves that you can cut and harvest again.
— Tip: Plant a big patch and stagger your harvesting times so you can always have a fresh supply of greens during the growing season.
SUMMER SQUASH
Many gardeners let zucchini and other summer squash get big before they harvest them. But the fruits have the best flavor and texture if you pick them when they’re about 4 or 5 inches long.
— Tip: Look for male squash flowers — they’re the ones without the little baby squash on the stem side — and shred them for a colorful addition to salads or stuff them with cheese and cut-up fresh vegetables.
TOMATOES
One of the tastiest vegetables (at least in our opinions!), tomatoes are also some of the easiest to harvest. Wait for them to fully change color and the fruits to have a bit of softness before picking. If frost threatens your tomatoes as they begin to color up, harvest them and allow them to finish ripening indoors.
— Tip: Harvest tomatoes on the verge of changing color for fried green tomatoes or green-tomato salsa.
WINTER SQUASH
Let winter squash mature before harvesting — wait until their rinds are thick enough that you can’t pierce them with your thumbnail. Then store them for several months in cool, dry conditions.
— Tip: Like summer squash, you can harvest winter squash when they’re still young (less than 6 inches in size) and eat them when they’re fresh.
*Article courtesy, Better Homes and Gardens
