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Planting, Growing, and Harvesting Okra
Okra thrives in warm weather and is traditionally grown in the southern U.S., though there are varieties for northern growers, too. Once it鈥檚 harvest season, pick the pods every day so it doesn鈥檛 get overripe and tough. See how to plant, grow, and harvest okra.
About Okra
Many gardeners are discovering okra, and the range of this warm-weather crop has been creeping northward and gaining in popularity. This plant not only grows edible vegetables and beautiful flowers, but it is also rich in vitamin A and low in calories, which makes it a great addition to your diet.
If you look at the flower of okra, you鈥檒l see a resemblance to a hibiscus flower. It鈥檚 no coincidence鈥攐kra is a member of the hibiscus family!
Growing
- Eliminate weeds when the plants are young, then mulch heavily鈥4 to 8 inches鈥攖o prevent more weeds.
- During the growing season, recommends that you 鈥渃ultivate around the okra plants to remove weeds and grass. To avoid damaging the okra roots, pull weeds close to the plants by hand.鈥
- Side-dress the plants with 10-10-10, aged manure, or rich compost (1/2 pound per 25 feet of row). You could also apply a balanced liquid fertilizer monthly. Avoid too much nitrogen, which deters flowering and encourages leafy growth. Learn more about soil amendments and preparing soil for planting.
- When the seedlings are about 3 inches tall, thin the plants so that they are 18 to 24 inches apart.
- Keep the plants well watered throughout the summer months. One inch of water per week is ideal, but use more if you are in a hot, arid region.
- High heat can slow the growth of okra.
- Prune the tops of okra plants when they reach 5 to 6 feet tall. This will result in more side branches. Prune those as needed.
- In warm regions, some growers cut plants to about 2 feet when productivity slows in summer. The plants grow back and produce another crop of okra.
Photo credit: Chunumunu/GettyImages
Note: Okra has large, hairy leaves, as well as tiny spines on its pods, both of which may cause skin irritation; consider wearing gloves and/or long sleeves when handling. 鈥淪pineless鈥 types have pods that don鈥檛 present this problem. Regardless of type, irritation does not occur when you eat okra.
Harvesting
When you harvest okra, get out the gloves and wear a long-sleeved shirt to protect yourself from the tiny spines that can make your hands and arms itch for days.
- Once okra is ripe, harvest every day! The pods grow so fast and ripen within a day, so you need to pick continually. Overripe okra is too tough to eat.
- The best pods are only 2 to 4 inches long. This is when okra is at its softest and most digestible.
- Cut the stem just above the cap with a knife. If the stem is too hard to cut, the pod is probably too old and should be tossed.
- Only one pod grows beneath each leaf, so break off the leaf after harvesting the pod.
- Harvest often: The more you pick, the more flowers will appear, and okra goes from flowering to fruit in a few days.
- A severe freeze can damage pods. If one is predicted and pods are drying on the plant for seeds, cut the plant and hang it indoors to dry. Put a paper bag over it so if the pods shatter, the seeds will not be lost.
In the South, regular okra plants can get too tall to harvest; if this happens, cut them back to 12 to 18 inches above the ground. This is usually done in July or August. The plants will sprout again to make a second crop. Otherwise, consider a dwarf variety!
How to Store Okra
- To store okra, put the uncut and uncooked pods into freezer bags and keep them in the freezer. Or wash and blanch okra before freezing.
- Or, can okra to have it throughout the winter.
Cooking Notes
Okra can be consumed in a number of ways鈥攂readed and deep-fried, pickled, stewed (in Indian cuisine), air-fried (a reader favorite), and even raw in the field! Of course, the most famous okra dish is probably gumbo.
For a nice stewy dish, simmer fresh tomatoes and onions and perhaps some pre-fried bacon pieces. Add chopped okra. On the stove, cook for 25 minutes, and the soft insides of okra will help create a nice thick, savory broth to serve over rice.
Or, try roasting okra to bring out its natural nuttiness. Just remove the cap, split lengthwise, and roast on a baking sheet for 25 minutes; we cover with aluminum foil for the first half of cooking.
Catherine Boeckmann
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Okra blooms do not last more than a day before falling off, leaving behind the small green nub that will eventually turn into the okra pod, which will be ready to harvest in a few days. If the pods are still developing, your plant is still healthy.
If no pods are forming, it could have to do with the growing environment. Okra needs full sun and temperature fluctuations can cause stress. Also, extended rainy periods or stretches with little sunshine can also cause flowers to drop.
My dad taught me that okra seeds do best if sowed in damp soil, barely covered, just before a rain. When mature, I slice the pods and dehydrate for use in soup.
I grow okra, and have great success with the plant, but my question is what plants are compatible and what plants are combative with okra. please give me the answer to this question????
Plant herbs near okra such as sage, oregano, savory, coriander, dill, and thyme. All repel insect pests (like cabbage moths and spider mites) and also attract beneficial insects and pollinators.
When my okra plants are about 18-inches tall, I cut the top out of the plant, or cut it back to the nearest leaves from the top. The plant will then branch out from the cut giving several limbs with blooms and pods, increasing production; also, the plant does not grow so very tall.
At the end of season, do I trim the okra plants down or do I pull them up all together?
Generally, okra should be pulled up and disposed of at the end of the growing season. However, there is something called 鈥渞atooning,鈥 which is the process of cutting down the okra plants in late summer to encourage a second production of okra into fall. This is usually done in late July to mid August, and stems are cut down to about 6 to 12 inches. Depending on where you are located, it’s likely too late in the season for ratooning this year, so we would recommend pulling up your plants if they’ve stopped producing and your first fall frost date is less than 10 or so weeks away.
Just curious why "Clemson Sprineless" isn't on your recommended variety list? It's about all I see around here.
It is Oct. 5 /19. My okra is growing limbs out of the stalk and producing even more okra. Is this normal ? I live in mobile , Al.
I planted a garden for first time in my yard where grass was. Covered the grass until it died then simply plugged the ground and dropped in the plants that came up from seeds in the kitchen. Wow! Everything was mixed up and I didn't know what was what. Spinach, 2 types Lettuce, cucumbers, okra, 3 kinds of peppers, even a cantaloupe, radishes beets, carrots, basil, oregano, broccoli cauliflower and green onions 2 types.... in a tiny space. Everything just started growing. I didn't know what they were but after a month or so, I saw cucumbers, lettuce, a beet, or maybe it was a radish? a banana pepper, and the okra had flowers but nothing on them. Today the OKRA is as tall as me, at least 5 ft, and they just keep giving me okra. I didn't know I could just throw them in the freezer, so THANKS! I think it took my okra about 2 or 3 months to all get going. The one plant in most sun started early but the others are just now going. My neighbor told me after I planted them all in little holes that I should have cultivated the dirt before planting, but the plants didn't know that and they just took off from that little hole I put them in anyway. It has changed my life. I didn't think I could grow a garden, but I didn't really, I just took the time to plant a few seeds, and they did the rest. Makes me want to plant the seed of a dream I've had all my life and see if it will grow!
