Master Gardener Tips: Put your harvest to good use

Nebraska Extension

Master Gardener

Saving your harvest info—Timing for harvesting your vegetables is primarily dictated by the length of time they have been growing. It’s recommended to keep your empty seed packets through each planting season with a map of what’s planted where for plant identification. Your seed packets give you planting instructions, growing tips and the expected dates for your harvest times. If you’re a tech-savvy gardener, put the harvest date in your phone calendar as a digital reminder as it gets close to the picking times for your different plants.

Picking your harvest — The best time to pick your garden bounty is in the early morning. Produce harvested early tends to stay crisp and fresh, while veggies picked in the heat of the day tend to wilt. Some plants, like tomatoes and peas, should be picked before completely ripe, while many others need to stay on the vine until it dries up. Proper storage once your produce is picked is essential — some need room temperature storage, others somewhere cool and dark, while many taste best in the cold crisper drawer of the fridge.

Sealing your herbs—Nothing like opening a jar of herbs in the cold of winter and having that scent remind you of the beautiful summer day you picked it and set it to drying. The peak time to dry herbs is right before flowering when the oil content is at its highest. Low-moisture herbs like rosemary and oregano can be air-dried, tied with a string and hung upside down. High-moisture herbs like mint and basil need to be in a dehydrator or low-temp oven to decrease any mold growth. Once completely dried, store your herbs in air-tight containers.

Can safely — When we consider canning, keeping food safe for later use is the ultimate goal. Canning refers to the process of either a pressure-cooked or water-bathed method depending on the acidity of your produce. It allows for the storage of food on shelves in glass jars versus taking up limited freezer space. If you are new to canning, please check out your local extension office. They will be able to offer safety tips, equipment recommendations and give explicit instructions on which method is safest for your specific produce.

Freezing your harvest — If you have extra garden produce and don’t want to resort to traditional canning methods, then look to freezing your harvest so you can enjoy that freshness long after the growing season is over. Before freezing, however, you need to blanch/shock your vegetables. Blanching will help prevent enzymes from damaging the color, flavor and nutrients of your produce and destroys any microorganisms. Boil them briefly, drain, and then plunge into cold water, drain again before spreading them in a single layer on a cookie sheet. Once your produce is frozen solid, store in a label-dated airtight container or bag.

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