Grow Video: Harvesting
There are several ways to harvest plants from your Flex Farm. For leafy greens, such as lettuce, we recommend harvesting the whole plant. For most herbs, we recommend either harvesting the whole plant or using the “cut-and-come-again” method.
When harvesting, it’s important to observe proper food safety protocols. On Farmative, you can access a number of Food Safety resources to help guide you.
Most leafy green varieties are ready to harvest when their leaves start to intersect and you no longer see the white panel in the back. The lettuce seeds provided in your Supply Box typically take 21 - 28 days to mature when in the Flex Farm.
For herbs, we recommend reviewing the Herb Growing Guide available on Farmative to determine when different herb varieties are ready for harvest.
Instructions:
Before doing anything, thoroughly wash your hands with soap and water and apply food safety gloves.
Clean your tools. Make sure any bins being used for storing or transporting harvested food have been washed, rinsed, and sanitized. Follow the same process for any scissors or tools you intend to use as well.
Wash any surfaces you plan to use during the harvest. Prepare a bin to discard roots and rockwool.
NOTE: WE HIGHLY RECOMMEND USING FOOD SAFETY GLOVES WHEN HANDLING HARVESTED PLANTS. IF YOU TOUCH ANYTHING OTHER THAN PLANTS WITH THE GLOVES (LIKE YOUR CELL PHONE) YOU WILL NEED TO REGLOVE BEFORE HANDLING PLANTS AGAIN.
To harvest, carefully pull the plant, roots, and rockwool out of the plant space.
Using your hands, gently separate the roots and rockwool cube from the plant. Place the harvested plant on the table or directly in a bag or sterilized bin for food distribution. Place the roots and rockwool in a trash can.
Repeat until all plants have been harvested.
Once the whole Flex Farm has been harvested, immediately place your harvest in a refrigerated space. When properly stored, leafy green crops may last over 4 weeks.
NOTE: PLACE A PAPER TOWEL IN YOUR BIN OR BAG. DRY PRODUCE WILL LAST LONGER.
Follow our Post Harvest Cleaning Instructions after every harvest.