No More Green Tomatoes

In an earlier post I described what I do when I’m faced with a blue norther threatening to turn my still unripe tomatoes into tomatocicles. And as promised, I’m back to share with you the photos of the small green slicer, shown in my previous post, that I was letting ripen on my kitchen counter.

Three weeks later, on December 8, I decided that the small slicer, that I had picked on November 17 for this green tomato ripening test, looked ready to be sampled. I took a photo just before and after slicing it. You can see that it was a nice even red inside and out and was still nice and plump. My two guys and I tasted the tomato and the verdict was that it had a nice tomato flavor. The flesh was not dry or mealy. If we hadn’t polished it off sampling it, it would have been perfect on a salad or sandwich.

I picked my green cherry tomatoes and remaining small slicers on Thanksgiving as our first predicted freeze bore down on us. They have been ripening nicely in my kitchen too. Last night, December 15, we enjoyed a fresh salsa made from most of what remained from that harvest along with store bought tomatillos, garlic and cilantro.

So remember next year that your unripe tomatoes don’t have to turn to mush on the vine or be turned into fried green tomatoes if the first freeze of the year threatens them before they are ready to be picked. Go ahead and pick them all, leave them in a colander out of direct heat and light and use them as they ripen, just as if they were ripening on the vine.

See a complete list of my gardening tips at my garden coach profile.

Green Tomatoes and the Big Chill

So, your tomatoes are still producing, not all of the fruit is ripe and a heavy frost or freeze is forecast, what do you do? You get out there and pick all of your tomatoes of course, regardless of color, as the cold front's winds are bearing down, threatening to turn your still productive plants into dead tomatocicles.

You're not into the fried green tomato thing you say? Not to worry. Tomatoes are climacteric fruits. This means that they will continue to ripen after you pick them. Last year I decided to see just how green a tomato could be and still ripen to a lovely red and taste like a homegrown tomato. I kept my rescued tomatoes in a colander in the kitchen away from heat sources and out of the direct sunlight. I was surprised to find out that even the dark green ones would eventually ripen. The occasional fruit would shrivel a bit, however almost every tomato ripened and was enjoyed instead of being left on the vine to freeze. It was great having a tomato from my garden at Christmas.

As I am writing this, we are in a warm spell in between a couple of light frosts and our first freeze that is predicted for Thanksgiving night. (Guess what I'll be doing after turkey dinner?) Before our previous light frost I picked just one small slicer that was barely beginning to blush. (I have a system for keeping a light frost from damaging the plants so that they can continue to produce until a heavy frost or freeze.) The tomato pictured was picked on November 17 and photographed on November 18. I will do a follow up post to let you know how long it took to fully ripen and what it looked and tasted like.

So, if your tomato plants haven't been done in by Jack Frost yet and still have tomatoes on them, grab a spare colander as that blue norther is bearing down and pick them all. By doing so, you will enjoy some fruits of summer during the gray days of winter.

Update: Click here to read my follow up post.

Tomato Time in Texas

If you planted tomatoes in your spring vegetable garden in Texas, you probably have been enjoying the fruits of your labor for a while now. However, if you didn’t get any in the ground, it’s not too late to enjoy fresh, homegrown tomatoes from your garden this year.

Between now and the Fourth of July is prime tomato transplant planting time in North Texas for a fall harvest of tasty tomatoes. Just as with spring plantings, and possibly even more important in our summer heat, you should pinch off the lowest set of leaves on your transplants and set the plants deep in the ground, almost up to the next set of leaves. The tomato plant will grow roots along the buried stem. You will have to be attentive to the watering needs of your new transplants, but if you are, you will be amply rewarded.

I have had good success with Celebrity tomato setting fruit even during the heat, but you will get even better fruit set as the weather cools a bit. If your plants are flowering but there is not much wind, you can assist pollination and fruit set by thumping the blossoms. Another good vegetable choice for planting now is eggplant. Last year my Japanese eggplant set a bumper crop of fruits during the heat of the summer. Just remember to mulch to keep the root zone cooler and keep sufficient water on your new transplants. (I use old hay to mulch my veggie garden.)

Whether your tomatoes are home grown or store bought, you want to maximize their storage potential. I discovered an interesting tip for storing tomatoes in a recent America’s Test Kitchen’s “Notes from the Test Kitchen” e-mail. You can read about their tests and results. It’s amazing how something so simple can make such a big difference.

May the tomato fairy be good to you.