Harvesting Your Garden

After putting a lot of work and time in your garden, with all the weeding and watering and patience that was required; now is the time to start thinking about harvesting your crops.  There are several options to consider when you are ready to reap the rewards of your efforts. Now is the time to make all of your hard labor pay off.

First, you can choose cooking the veggies. This includes boiling, baking, and broiling.  If your choice is boiling, then pick the vegetables close to meal time.  Do not remove the skins unless they are too tough. Skins contain many minerals and nutrients.  Do not boil too long as that will result in loss of valuable vitamins and minerals. Use of a pressure cooker is best, as there is very little water involved in this process.  Baking or broiling vegetables is better than boiling.<!–more–>

When preserving vegetables for a long time, freezing is the a better process.  Gather the crop when it is at its prime, then try  to get it into the freezer within an hour. Start by blanching the vegetables.  This is the quick boiling process that stops the growth of enzymes. Do this quickly for only one minute to avoid the loss of vitamins.

Have set up two sinks or containers, one with cold water and one with ice water.  Drop the blanched vegetables into the cold water first for one minute, then move to the ice water for two minutes.  Pack immediately in air tight containers and place in the freezer.  Those handy plastic bags work very good.  If you are freezing sweet corn, it is recommended to remove the kernals from the cob and then blanch.  If you need to repeat this procedure more than once, replace the cold water and add ice to the ice water.

The third option is aimed at root plants,such as carrots, beets, turnips and potatoes.In colder climates they can be left in the ground safely after several frosts.  In milder climates, these can be left in the ground all winter.  If the temperature drops, protect them with a thick layer of hay or straw.

Of course, eating raw vegetables is the healthiest choice to obtain all of their nutritional values.  Remember that if you used any sort of pesticide during the growing cycle be sure to wash your vegetables
carefully and thoroughly before preparation or eating.