Allotments 4 All

i have courgettes ready to harvest should i cut them off the plant or pick them off and on the same subject what about podded veg ie beans and peas? just wondering which is best for the plant

I use secateurs as I usually pull the plant up  ;D

i usually use a knife with corgettes. and usualy just pick beans. hold the plant aswell though or you might tear the whole lot. have done that before.

I use a knife for courgettes and scissors for beans, peas etc to save pulling at the plant, like sarah I have pulled up the whole plant before! :-[

I usually just get hold and twist

I do twist courgettes if I forget to take my knife with me to the plot, but if you aren't careful you can really damage the plant and end up with it kicking the bucket!  Runner beans I use my thumbnail, same with french and peas, but again, you do have to be quite careful as it is quite easy to damage the stem with all the babies still on it meaning they die and you loose 6 or 7 fruits for the want of 10 seconds.