Tom

Okra doesn't start moving till temps get into the 80's, it actually enjoys the 90's! So I intercrop it into a double row of leaf lettuce, following the lettuce by a few weeks.

The pre-soaking is an excellent idea, even for direct sowing. I direct sow at 1seed/inch and thin to 18", but some people plant densely, even thinning to 1/6". They will end up with many straight stalks without many branches, and fruit only at the end of the growing columnar plant.

By spacing widely, the plant will develop a branching structure with ten or maybe more fruiting points per 18" of row. Math will tell you that I am getting more growing points per foot of row. My plants become stump-rooted and sprad widely, up to 3 ft wide, so leave plenty of room for this crop! This year i'm planning to tip-prune the initial growing tip at about 2 ft high, to encourage uniform branching.

Last year, I found that after strong branching and harvest began, It was good to prune off the larger leaves which formed the initial plant before it branched, which had grown 1 ft wide leaes at that point. This allowed easier access to find the fruit without brushing up on so many spines.

I suggest using light pruning shears to harvest okra, as I've found snapping or knife-cutting them increases chance of getting spined. A two handed operation with secateurs in one hand and grasping the fruit in the other. I pick the rows with plastic trays used for under-the-bed storage.
Okra is fairly fragile and shouldn't be piled too deep in a box, or treated too roughly, or else by market time it will have dark bruises along the ridges and no be as attractive cosmetically. Okra can be picked at any size, and some people prefer small okra, mainly because it will always be tender. However, well-grown okra can remain tender through the larger sizes. Don't let customers cheat you out of half your crop by talking you into picking them too small, unless they are willing to pay a premium. Since Okra harvest takes place in the heat of summer, take care to reove field heat after picking, don't just let them sweat in a box. Spread them out to cool or just pack them into quarts and let them cool off. I get $2/qt.

The final word on whether or not an okra pod remains tender is to test it by snapping off the tip of the pod. If it snaps cleanly and crisply, it has not yet become fibrous and is just as good as a smaller pod. Under stress, the maximum size will decrease, so keep them well watered, and top dress them halfway into the season. They are amazingly productive.

One last word. If any exist, target the (east)Indian community, they are massive okra('bhindi') consumers, and can usually be contacted/networked through their dominance in the motel industry.

Oh, I forgot. Last year I ended up pulling my okra out of the ground in the fall with a chain and a front-end loader, some had stumps 4" in diameter!

More than you ever wanted to know about Okra? Maybe, but you asked for it.

My traditional plant dates are mid May in GH and field plant end of first week June. That's for central PA which isn't prime okra country, but works for me.

Thanks,
Patty

Marla