FRUIT AND VEG Pick pumpkins and squash

Test to see if your pumpkins and winter squash are ripe by pressing the skin with your fingernail – it shouldn’t feel as though it will pierce. Harvest them with as long a stalk as possible.

Pick them on a bright, sunny day and leave them in the sun for the skin to harden further – this will help improve their storage time. If they’re not quite ripe, reduce the number of leaves around the fruit and slip a board under the fruits to protect them from soil moisture. Store somewhere cool and dry like an unheated spare room.

Harvest your pumpkins and squashes once ripe to eat now or store for later