Stage of separation, harvest size, separating from more than 1 type of vegetable at a time, and saying the blessing
Question
I understand that when reciting the text, I will be designating and naming various parts of the produce for a Kohen, Levi, and on some years for a poor person, and on other years, as ma'aser sheni.
I understand the need to separate terumot and ma'aserot from every batch I harvest. Bearing in mind that I am growing at home, please advise:
-If the size of each ‘picking’ relevant (‘harvest’ doesn’t sound like the right word). I imagine that there might only be a few (even one or two or three) at a time. Of course it might be more.
-in time, there might well be 1 or 2 vegetables from different vegetable types.
When must /or can the blessing be said?
And when must the tithes be taken?
Answer
Once you bring the vegetables home, you need to separate terumot and ma'aserot. If you're outside in your garden and you pick one cucumber, or one cherry tomato, you can actually eat it without tithing. Once you bring it home, or pick more than one veggie at a time, it requires tithing.
The text of the separation appears at the end of the pamphlet, Mitzvot of the Land in a Nutshell
Quantity does matter, since in the end, we are working on percentages. So, if you picked only one cucumber, the bit more than 1% that you physically separate and will later discard will be much smaller than the bit more than 1% of your 10 cherry tomatoes.
Again, the way our nusach works, you don't have to be precise in the amount, however it needs to be at least 1%.
Say you have two potatoes, one cucumber, and two peppers you picked. You bring them home and place them all before you on the counter or table, or basket, and take off a bit from each, making sure it's more than 1%. Put those parts off to the side.
Because you told me earlier that (1) you live in olei Bavel territory and (2) that you are growing these vegetables outside (on your uncovered rooftop), you say the berachah: ברוך... להפריש תרומות ומעשרות
Then you recite the text. This year (5785), you say only the first part of the text, in which you name and designate the gifts. Don't go on to say the berachah on pidyon ma'aser sheni and the text.
You double-wrap and dispose the terumot and you're good to go!