Harvesting

Ripening and Harvesting Tomatoes

National Gardening Association — One of the great joys of gardening is reaching for the first red-ripe tomato on the vine and biting into it. There's a flavor, juiciness and pleasure you'll never find in a supermarket tomato. Because tomatoes ripen from the inside out, when the . ...More…

Harvesting Root Crops

National Gardening Association — After all your hard work, it's time to enjoy your harvest. Here's how to pick your crops. Start harvesting beets and turnips early for their greens, and baby carrots when they're the size of your little finger. This will give you a good start ...More…

Harvesting Sweet Potatoes

National Gardening Association — Gardeners in North Carolina, the biggest sweet potato-producing state, time their plantings so the roots will mature by late September and early October. This gives them time to harvest before the first frost, so the potatoes are in storage as ...More…

Harvesting Potatoes

National Gardening Association — After all your work of planting and caring for your potato plants, here's how to get the most from your harvest. The earliest or "new" potatoes of the season are a treat not to be missed. They're small, round, smooth and delicious. When ...More…

Harvesting & Preserving Peanuts

National Gardening Association — Inspect your peanut plants every couple of days as harvest time approaches. Check plants in different parts of the row to determine if the pods directly under the main part of the plant are ready to harvest. Prior to harvesting, the plants start ...More…

Harvesting Peas

National Gardening Association — One of the marvelous things about growing your own vegetables is that you decide when it's time to harvest. You can pick your vegetables just before preparing them, knowing that you have the youngest, freshest ones in town. Most commercial ...More…

Harvesting Onions

National Gardening Association — There's never a time when onions aren't ready for harvesting. They can be picked and eaten at any stage. No matter how many onions you use during the season, though, it's nice to have a crop of big onions mature at the end of summer to store ...More…

Harvesting Eggplant, Peppers and Okra

National Gardening Association — The most important thing about harvesting eggplant, peppers and okra is to start as soon as there's something to eat. It's the job of the plant to make seeds, so too much of the plant's effort will go into ripening the fruit instead of ...More…

Harvesting Corn

National Gardening Association — Harvesting corn is a matter of picking the ears at peak flavor. Here's how to know when to harvest. The prime harvest time for sweet corn passes quickly for most varieties except the supersweets, so gardeners need to know how to judge when to ...More…

Ripening Vine Crops

National Gardening Association — You don't have to worry about these vegetables going by before harvest time. The seeds inside them won't grow large enough to trigger the plant's stop-production mechanism until there's plenty of fruit already on the vines. Wait until all ...More…

Making Pumpkins Last

National Gardening Association — Winter squash are designed to last a long time in storage. But some basic principles will get you started with confidence Winter squashes keep best if stored in a cool, dry, dark spot. Pumpkins also store well for months at a time. The other ...More…

Into the Kitchen: Squash and Melons

National Gardening Association — To prepare summer squashes, wash the whole vegetable, trim off the ends and cut into cubes or slices. Serve thin, unpeeled raw slices in salads or with dips. Cook slices over steam for three to five minutes, or saute in olive oil until just ...More…