Knowing When to Harvest
Colour, firmness, and a taste test beat the calendar
1 min read
Most crops signal readiness by colour and feel rather than by size or date. Picking often and a little early usually gives you more food overall, because many plants keep producing only while you keep harvesting.
Reading the plant
Beans and courgettes are best young and turn woody within days. Tomatoes ripen fully off the vine if picked at first blush. Onions and garlic are ready when their tops flop and yellow. When unsure, harvest one and taste it before committing.
Habits for a longer season
- Pick beans, courgettes, and cucumbers every day or two at their peak.
- Cut lettuces and chard leaf by leaf rather than pulling the whole plant.
- Leave winter squash until the stem corks and a nail will not mark the skin.
- Harvest herbs just before flowering for the strongest flavour.
A glut is not a problem with the plant. It is a signal to pick more often and share the surplus.
Storage is its own subject; a quick primer is under post-harvest handling.
