Photo: TJ Jones and his amazing green chile.
It’s time to harvest your chile, tomatoes, jalapeños, cucumber, radishes, squash and more … NOW!
This is the perfect time to enjoy the fruits of your bounty. Chile is ripe and perfect for the picking. Remember, if you want red chile, then leave the fruit on the plant until it turns red.
According to gardening resources, although summer squash can get quite large and still be edible (zucchini can become as large as a baseball bat if left on the vine too long), you’re forfeiting quality and hindering subsequent yields if you allow it to get too big. Like most vegetables, summer squash is tender and tastiest when harvested young before seeds are fully developed. Harvest when the skin is still soft enough to be penetrated by a thumbnail. Pick zucchini when it’s about 6 to 8 inches long. If you like stuffed zucchini, allow them to grow to 8 to 10 inches. Crooknecks and straightnecks are best 6 to 8 inches long. Patty pans should be harvested when 4 to 5 inches in diameter.
Here are two things to keep in mind when you harvest summer squash.
- Cut the fruits from the vine carefully. Using a paring knife or garden shears, cut the stem about an inch above the fruit. Don’t try to twist or yank the squash as you could rip the skin or damage the plant.
- Frequent harvesting increases yields. With all summer squash, regular picking will keep the plants in production all season long. Think of each plant as a squash assembly line. When the plants are going gangbusters in midsummer, you may have to harvest two or three times a week!