When to harvest

Does the time of day when you harvest your vegetables affect their taste(flavor)? I was hungry for some cucumbers so I picked a few in the heat of day. They were dry & the taste just wasn't up to par to me :( I'm growing Diva,I had heard great reviews on this cucumber being the best tasting but have to say right now I'm not impressed.

I have read that it's best to pick in the early am, however....I just purchased a bottle of chardonnay because of the label...it's called "Night Harvest". They claim they pick the grapes at night when the cool air chills the fruit, preserving the acid balance. All I know, the bottle sits empty on the counter, waiting to be replenished!
I have a difficult time knowing when to harvest the melons. I've heard that when the melon breaks free from the vine it's ready, but mine are spliting from the heat, and slightly overripe!
You should try picking a cucumber tomorrow am and do a taste test!

It's the cantaloupes, the netted melons, that slip from the vine.

I'm growing charantais this year and canaries, and they don't do that. I'm pretty sure mine are no way ripe because they're still fuzzy, but after that, it's unclear.

LTilton:
I'm interested, what is charantais? canaries? I'd love to see photos..
LisaLu

These are the melons I'm growing, besides cantaloupes. These are all new varieties for me. Last year, I got kind of over-cantalouped.


http://www.johnnyseeds.com/catalog/product.aspx?category=1&subcategory=34&item=2442

http://www.johnnyseeds.com/catalog/product.aspx?category=1&subcategory=34&item=2481

http://www.johnnyseeds.com/catalog/product.aspx?category=1&subcategory=34&scommand=page&qstateid=16b294c1-3d45-444f-a4f7-6e15e4d525f2&sp=3&item=462

[that's "Charentais", I misspelled it

bump

This message was edited Aug 5, 2008 10:22 AM

christmascactus, I harvest mine in the morning, just as the dew has dried if I can time it that closely. That's the way I've heard it's best to harvest herbs, and I figure what's good for the herbs is good for the cukes. Do you have enough cukes to test it out? I do know tomatoes I've picked in the afternoon didn't seem to be as juicy as ones I pick in the morning.

OT as above -- my crenshaw melons "slipped" off the vine when I rolled them a little. Does that count?

LTilton:
That Savor looks really good. Do you ever save the seeds? Would you be interested in swaping some? I have really good yellow and orange watermelons goin' crazy this year. I save just about all my seeds, it's getting a bit out of hand, I could spare a few.....if anyone is interested.
LisaLu

LisaLu - I don't think I had many left. The Sugar Nut, in particular, was really hard to germinate and I used up a lot of seeds just to get one plant going.

I have extra watermelon seeds, though.