Seeds & Sunshine
with Jean M. Grant
Harvesting Your Vegetables and Fruits
Ways to harvest:
A preface: always do a quick read online about how to harvest your specific vegetables, as some are more particular than others (e.g. requiring curing/drying or have a longer grow period). When in doubt, refer to the good ol’ Farmer’s Almanac (online: https://www.almanac.com/).
1. Leafy vegetables – such as herbs, spinach, collards, lettuces, Swiss chard – just cut/clip and eat. Some grow back, depending on the season, or can be replanted for an autumn harvest. A few herbs may require “drying out.”
2. “Fruits” that have come from flowers – such as peas, beans, peppers, and tomatoes – just pick them right off the vines!
3. Vine vegetables – such as summer squashes, zucchini, eggplant, cucumbers – usually you can twist and snap them off.
4. Stalks – celery, asparagus – snip and enjoy!
5. Root vegetables (below ground) – Carrots are easy to pull up and wash off as needed and they will grow into the cold temperatures of late autumn and last a long time in the fridge. Beets, turnips, radishes, and parsnips are harvested the same way. Onions, garlic, shallots, potatoes, pumpkins, and winter squashes – these all need some “curing” (drying) time for a few weeks before storing for later use. Since they grow below ground, time and observing the stalks will indicate when they are ready for harvest. Sometimes you need to just dig up one to see how it’s going.
Spring Vegetables Have Come and Gone
Lettuce, spinach, early peas, asparagus, kale, chard, broccoli, rhubarb, cabbage, cauliflower…have come and gone. Some stick around longer than others. Leafy vegetables are known to bolt in summer heat. Bolting is when the plant is done growing the green parts we eat (lettuce, broccoli heads, spinach leaves), and puts its energy into flowers. Once this happens, the leaves can taste bitter.
Summer Vegetables in Full Force
Cucumbers, zucchini/summer squash, beans, chard, celery, collards, tomatoes. Pick, eat, enjoy! Many will keep on going into autumn, too, depending on weather conditions.
Autumn Vegetables are Still Going Strong
Potatoes, winter squashes, onions, shallots, tomatoes, carrots, peppers, collards, pumpkins, gourds. Ah, autumn! These vegetables require a longer growing season. Did you know you can also plant spring vegetables a second time in late summer for an autumn yield? These include green beans, peas, collards, lettuce, and spinach among others. Planting for autumn is all about giving them enough time to get sun, while also being frost-hardy (or beating the frosts). I usually plant them in mid to late August.
How about fruit?
I would be remiss to not talk a little about growing fruits.
Here’s my Fruit 101:
Always know your grow zone and sun location. You’re getting tired of hearing this, aren’t you?
Apples – Apple trees are an investment in time, space, and money. Do a little research at your local nursery before purchasing. I have a Macoun tree and Golden Delicious tree. Some years you get a lot! Some years, none. Some years, the four-legged critters eat them all. They need to be well-spaced to allow for growth, pruned as needed to put more energy into apples than foliage, and you should grow at least two varieties—they need cross-pollination.
Strawberries – These can grow in beds, rows, or pots. There are three kinds of strawberries: ever-bearing (slow and steady all summer), June-bearing (monster-sized crop early in June), and day-neutral (usually two to three peak times throughout the summer). Little critters love to eat these! Netting may be needed.
Blueberries – Varieties include lowbush, highbush—the most common, rabbiteye, and half-high. Some are self-pollinators, some are cross-pollinating. Some require more pruning than others, too. Blueberries like more acidic soil and lots of sun and being planted near each other, and away from other fruits/vegs.
Raspberries – These are the king of my yard. I got a handful of “canes” from a friend a few years back and they have taken over, needing constant maintenance to prevent the spread. These monsters produce an abundance of berries each autumn (with a small June harvest). The soil and sun must be in a magical alignment (west and south sun).
Raspberries can be ever-bearing like what I have, or June/Summer-only bearing. They like lots of sun and fertilizer. I also prune in the fall. The June fruits return on non-pruned (old growth) canes, and the autumn-growing (ever-bearing) fruit appear on new growth.
Final Tips…
• Some people fry up zucchini flowers. You can eat the greens on carrots, beets, radishes, turnips…
• Plant some spring (cold tolerant and quick growing) vegetables in late summer for an autumn crop.
• Did you know you can pick green tomatoes, box them up in newspaper, and store them in a cool, dark place for slower ripening into the autumn months? Yup! If an autumn frost is inevitable, quickly harvest all those green fruits before the frost kills them.
• For longer storage you can blanch and freeze vegetables, dry/cure for longer pantry storage, and “can” (pressure-can) them. I blanch my carrots and peas and freeze them, and directly freeze tomatoes and berries. I also make jam and applesauce.
Have specific gardening questions? Drop me an email through my website contact form. Join me next time to talk about autumn pruning and planting and preparing for winter.
© 2023 Jean M. Grant All Rights Reserved
Jean M. Grant is a former scientist turned author of romance and women’s fiction, an avid hiker and traveler, cat-lover, and coffee fanatic. Follow her for more hiking, traveling, baking, and gardening adventures. www.jeanmgrant.com
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