Harvest Tips & Tricks

Mid-July is here and many garden favorites are ready to be harvested! Read on to learn harvest tips and tricks for a few of our summer favorites.

Harvest tool maintenance

Be sure to wash and sanitize harvest knives and pruners regularly to prevent disease transfer between plants. Keeping tools sharp will help reduce damage to plants. If your harvest tools get wet during use, dry them thoroughly before storing to prevent rusting. 

Summer squash

With summer squash, bigger is not better. Overgrown squash tends to have thicker skin, more watery flesh and tougher seeds. In the photo below, squashes 1 and 3 are overgrown while 2, 4, and 5 are just right. To harvest squash, use a sharp knife to gently cut through the squash stem, anywhere from a quarter to half an inch above the fruit. Be sure to have a clear line of sight to where you are cutting so that you do not accidentally cut the main stem of the plant. Consider wearing long sleeves and gloves, as summer squash plants can be prickly!

Cucumbers

Harvest cucumbers by pinching the stem just above the cucumber with one hand and twisting the cucumber with the other. After a few rotations, the stem will weaken and break. As with summer squash, bigger is not always better. In the photo below, cucumbers 1 and 3 are overgrown while 2, 4 and 5 are just right. Consider wearing long sleeves and gloves while harvesting cucumbers. 

Tomatoes

As for tomatoes, every variety is a little different. Check out this handy guide to help you know how and when to harvest. 

Happy harvesting!