Are you a fresh fruits and vegetable buying kind of person looking for the best way to keep them all fresh?

Are you a fresh fruits and vegetable buying kind of person looking for the best way to keep them all fresh?

At our house, we purchase fresh fruits and vegetables. With the warmer months ahead of us, this should be on all our minds as a great way to add a little healthy to our meals (for a less expensive in season price.) Our 8 year old son has ADHD & Aspergers, keeping his diet clear of preservatives makes managing his symptoms so much easier. I find myself going to the farmers market, and stocking up on all kinds of fresh fruit and vegetables. Then I get home and it seems within a matter of days it all goes bad. So that is when I started searching for the best ways to store it all, to keep it all fresh longer. Here is what I have come up with. Fruits and veggies all emit a gas called ethylene, some just emit more than others. The key to keeping your fruits and veggies fresh longer, is to know which emit the most, and how to store them all, and what to store them with. The organicauthority.com was a great source of information regarding this.

Produce That Creates Ethylene Gas: Apples, apricots, avocados, ripening bananas, blueberries, cantaloupe, citrus fruit (not grapefruit), figs, grapes, green onions, honeydew, ripe kiwi fruit, mangoes, melons, mushrooms, nectarines, papayas, passion fruit, peaches, pears, peppers, pineapple, plums, prunes, tomatoes and watermelon.

Produce That Is Damaged by Ethylene Gas: Asparagus, broccoli, Brussels sprouts, cabbage, carrots, cauliflower, cucumbers, eggplant, green beans, kale, kiwi fruit, leafy greens, lettuce, parsley, peas, peppers, potatoes, romaine lettuce, spinach, squash, sweet potatoes, watercress and yams.

Take the Time to Plan Your Meals

• Plan your meals for the week before you go shopping and create a shopping list (Food on the table is a great resource for creating a healthy & affordable shopping list based on sale prices at your local stores, and your specific diet specifications. I use this, and I love it. Even though I love creating a great deal on my own, this takes the guessing work out of finding an inexpensive and healthy shopping list.This service is great for allergies and gluten free as well. We have quite a strict diet in our house, gluten free, fresh fruits and veggies, and a nut free home due to an allergy.)
• Only buy what's on your shopping list (very important to sticking to your budget)
• Eat and or cook the produce with the shortest shelf life first (or cut it up and freeze it, instead of buying packaged or canned fruits or veggies)
• If you still can't manage to eat all of your fruits and veggies, throw them in your compost pile (along with your food prep scraps)

Follow These Food Storage Guidelines

Produce	Storage	Life Expectancy
Apples	refrigerator (loose, not in bag)	up to 1 month
Apricots, Nectarines, Peaches, Plums	counter until ripe, then refrigerate in a bag	2-4 days
Artichokes	refrigerator, in a bag	1-2 weeks
Asparagus	refrigerator, trim stems, upright in a jar of water	3-4 days
Avocados	counter, store uneaten portion with the pit intact in a bag in the fridge	3-4 days
Bananas	counter	2 days
Berries & Cherries	covered in the fridge. Don’t wash until you use them (too much moisture in the package speeds spoilage).	1-2 days
Broccoli, Brussel Sprouts, Cauliflower	refrigerator, bag in the crisper	4-7 days
Carrots	refrigerator, take tops off	2 weeks
Celery	refrigerator, wrapped in aluminum foil	1-2 weeks
Citrus	room temperature of 60-70 degrees	1-2 weeks
Cucumber	refrigerator, bag in the crisper	4-5 days
Eggplant	cool, dry, dark place (counter, cupboard, basket)	3-4 days
Garlic	unpeeled - cool, dry, dark place; peeled - sealed container in refrigerator or freezer	unpeeled - several months; peeled - several weeks in refrigerator, months in freezer
Ginger	store in refrigerator for up to 2 weeks, then freeze remainder	if refrigerated - 2-3 weeks; if frozen - 2 months
Grapes	refrigerator, in a bag	1 week
Green Beans & Peas	refrigerator, in bag or container	3-5 days
Greens (lettuce, kale, spinach, cabbage)	refrigerator, bag in the crisper	1-2 weeks
Herbs (fresh)	refrigerator, trim stems, upright in a jar of water	1 week
Kiwis	counter until ripe, then refrigerate in a bag	3-4 days
Mangoes, Melons	counter until ripe, then refrigerate in a bag	4 - 7 days
Mushrooms	cool, dry dark place (counter, cupboard, basket) in a bag	2-3 days
Onions	cool, dry dark place (counter, cupboard, basket)	2 months
Pears	counter until ripe, then refrigerate in a bag	3-4 days
Peppers	refrigerator, bag in the crisper	4-5 days
Potatoes	cool, dry dark place (counter, cupboard, basket)	1-2 weeks
Root vegetables (radishes, beets, turnips)	refrigerator, leave greens on	1-2 weeks
Squash	cool, dry dark place (counter, cupboard, basket)	4-5 days
Tomatoes	counter, uncovered; refrigerate if very ripe	2-3 days