After all the sowing and growing, harvesting is the reward — and doing it well makes a real difference. Picking at the right moment gives the best flavour, and with many crops, the more you pick the more they produce. Here is when and how to harvest, and how to keep the surplus.
- Pick often more picking, more crop
- In the morning freshest and crispest
- When ripe best flavour
- Handle gently bruise-free keeps longer
When to harvest
As a rule, pick young and pick often. Many crops — beans, courgettes, salad leaves, herbs — keep producing as long as you keep picking, and turn tough or run to seed if you let them sit. Fruiting crops like tomatoes are best left to ripen fully for flavour. Harvest in the cool of the morning when produce is at its crispest.
How to harvest
Use clean scissors or a knife for anything you cut, and pull gently for roots. For leafy crops, the cut-and-come-again approach — taking outer leaves and leaving the centre — gives weeks of pickings from one plant. Little and often beats one big harvest for both flavour and yield.
Storing your harvest
Most leafy and soft produce keeps best cool and dark — a few days in the fridge. For a glut, freeze (beans, peas, soft fruit, chopped herbs), or dry herbs and chillies. Onions, garlic, squash and pumpkins store for months if you 'cure' them first — dry them in an airy, warm spot for a couple of weeks, then keep them cool, dark and dry.
Save some seed for next year
Let a few of your best plants flower and set seed and you can collect your own for next season — free, and adapted to your garden. Our guide to storing and saving seeds shows how to keep them viable.
Frequently asked questions
Does picking more give me more?
For many crops yes — regular picking keeps beans, courgettes, salad and herbs producing.
When is the best time of day to harvest?
The cool of the morning, when produce is crisp and full of moisture.
How do I store a glut?
Freeze or dry the surplus, and cure onions, garlic and squash for long keeping.
Can I save my own seed?
Yes — from open-pollinated and heirloom varieties; see our seed-saving guide.
Enjoy the harvest, then browse all seeds.
