Forget everything I've ever said about growers and wholesalers devising ways to pick and ship produce while it is still green and how this works to the advantage of everyone but the consumer. The pear is the exception.

You've probably been eating local cucumbers for weeks. They have been with us since July and the season isn't over yet. There was a time, in early August, when you would have had trouble finding a cucumber that wasn't local. You could easily identify the outsiders by their excessively dark and shiny skins.