Tomatoes
For full flavor, pick tomatoes from the vine when the skin is smooth, glossy, fully colored and feels slightly firm, not hard, when gently squeezed.
The bottom of the tomato is where the fruit will begin to ripen. Be sure you know what color the tomato variety should be at maturity (red, pink, yellow, purple, orange) to estimate when to pick. Tomato flavor becomes much more complex as the fruit ripens, so there is good reason to be patient.
Store ripe-picked tomatoes at room temperature indoors or in a shady place outside. Never refrigerate tomatoes, because temperatures below 55 degrees can cause flavor compounds to break down. Bumper crops can be frozen, canned or dried for future use.
It's true; you can pick tomatoes sooner and allow them to ripen off the vine. If you want to pick them before they're ripe, they must be a mature green color. You can ripen tomatoes in a well-ventilated, open cardboard box at room temperature, checking them every few days so that, if any spoil, you're sure to spot them and remove from the box. Mature green tomatoes will ripen in approximately 14 days at 70 degrees F and 28 days at 55 degrees F.
Snap Beans
Use two hands to harvest, because bean stems are easily broken. Don't pull on pods; instead, hold the stem in one hand and pick with the other. Healthy bean plants will often re-bloom and produce a second -- sometimes a third -- flush of beans when plants are thriving.
You can blanch and freeze snap beans easily. Blanch in boiling water for one minute and then cool in ice water. This process brightens and sets color while preserving the crispy texture of the pods.
Summer Squash
Harvest summer squash with a sharp knife/pruner, when firm but when the skin can still be easily pierced with your nail. Zucchini and scalloped squash should be deeply colored; crookneck and straight neck squash should be paler. Check plants daily or every other day while they're producing and remove any overripe squash as soon as you see it to reduce the plant's demand for moisture and nutrients.
Since summer squash is so prolific, you can slow production by picking both the male and female blossoms. Harvesting the first flowers won't hurt fruit production since the early flowers are male, which bear pollen but not fruit. Blossoms are edible. Just remove the inner portion and use the petals, which will add a splash of color and taste to summer salads and recipes. Squash can be marinated, grilled and stored in your freezer if you have an overabundance.
Cucumbers
Harvest cucumbers when the fruit is just mature. Don't wait for cucumbers to get too big since they can turn seedy and bitter. Check vines daily as the fruit starts to appear because they enlarge quickly. Vines produce more fruit the more you harvest. To remove the fruit, use a sharp knife/pruner, cutting the stem just above the fruit. Do not pull them off the vine since pulling can damage vines.
You don't want overripe fruit; it has seeds that are hard to chew. Yellowing at the bottom of a cucumber is a sign that the fruit is too ripe and bitter. Always remove any overripe fruit. You can keep harvested cucumbers in the refrigerator for 7 to 10 days, using as soon as possible after picking. It's best to plastic wrap or a zip-lock bag to store them to keep moisture in and they'll stay crispy longer.
Peppers
Use a sharp knife/pruner to cut peppers, but leave a short stub of stem attached. Pulling peppers by hand can cause branches to break off. Pick peppers when they are full size and fully colored. It's best to harvest often which will increase the plant's yield. If you aren't sure what fully colored is, check the variety stick tag description. Many hot peppers will turn red but can be eaten green. Red, yellow and orange bells start out green and turn color later as they continue to mature on the vine.
Most peppers can be eaten at just about any stage, and peppers have a long time window for harvest; they can continue to mature on the plant for several days past maturity. Overripe bells usually get sweeter, and overripe hot peppers usually get hotter. After harvesting, rinse, pat dry and store in your refrigerator.
Eggplant
Use a sharp knife/pruner to harvest eggplants as soon as they are big enough to eat, and while the skin is still glossy. The flesh should not spring back when you press down on it with your finger. If the skin turns dull and the seeds inside are hard and dark, you've waited too long. Like peppers, harvest eggplants often to increase the yield. Once harvested, rinse, pat dry and store in your refrigerator. Remember, once you cut into an eggplant, the meat will begin to darken. Various marinades or lemon juice will prevent darkening.
General News on 07/19/2018