Tip For Ripening Green Tomatoes!!!!

[pdxwindjammer]

For those of us in the northwest, I would bet money that most of you still have many green tomatoes on the vine. We have had an unusually cool summer with temps dropping into the 50's and 60's almost every night, even when day time temps have been in the 90's.

A friend of mine shared this link with me today and I am going to give it a shot! I do have many varieties that are giving me red tomatoes but others that are loaded with green fruit.

I am interested in hearing if anyone else has tried this method?

http://blog.oregonlive.com/kympokorn...dg_smoref_face

[Buck7762]

pdxwindjammer,

I live in the north east and have the same problem. I'm going to try this technique tonight. I'm crossing my fingers, I have lots of green.

Thanks,

Buck7762

[carolyn137]

Root pruning is nothing new and you can try it sometime, but right now I think it's too late in the season for most of us.

Two ways to root prune. As described in the article cut a circle around the main stem about 6 inches out and down with a flat bladed shovel. That severs the feeder roots.

Or, you can pull up a bit on plants, twisting as you do, which also severs the feeder roots.

I've done both and was somewhat underwhelmed withe results.

I used to run out there when frost was expected and pick all the large greenies and wrap them in newspaper and let them ripen but stopped doing that years ago.

And some try to ripen up green fruits by putting them in a closed paper bag with a piece of cut apple. The ethylene gas fiven off by the apple does hasten ripening b'c tomatoes naturally synthesize that gas as part of the ripening process. BUT, when done in a closed environment, such as the paper bag, the gas level builds up and is no different than the artificially gassed shipped in tomatoes we get in the winter.

[Bama mater]

Folks, Just pick your green maters before the frost and pickle them. Put 1 hot pepper in each jar and come Thanksgiving you'll be glad you did

Thanksgiving turkey and all the fixins and as a bonus PICKLED GREEN TOMATOS

[RinTinTin]

*******I used to run out there when frost was expected and pick all the large greenies and wrap them in newspaper and let them ripen but stopped doing that years ago.*******

Good for you. I have always contended that if you are going to consume greenies, let them experience that first frost...it gives a huge boost to their flavor!

[carolyn137]

Originally Posted by RinTinTin

*******I used to run out there when frost was expected and pick all the large greenies and wrap them in newspaper and let them ripen but stopped doing that years ago.*******

Good for you. I have always contended that if you are going to consume greenies, let them experience that first frost...it gives a huge boost to their flavor!

I had no intention of eating greenies at all; I wanted them to ripen up. And the first killing frost where I live is not going to give a greenie that will ripen up.

So my mantra is.....for everything there is a season..... and over the winter I'll buy either some on the vine hydroponic cluster ones shipped in from Canada or some of the better grape varieties.

[Stepheninky]

You can put them in a paper sack with a ripe apple and they will turn, granted they are not as good and even though they will change color some will be hard a pithy.

[carolyn137]

Originally Posted by Stepheninky

You can put them in a paper sack with a ripe apple and they will turn, granted they are not as good and even though they will change color some will be hard a pithy.

And I wrote above:

(And some try to ripen up green fruits by putting them in a closed paper bag with a piece of cut apple. The ethylene gas fiven off by the apple does hasten ripening b'c tomatoes naturally synthesize that gas as part of the ripening process. BUT, when done in a closed environment, such as the paper bag, the gas level builds up and is no different than the artificially gassed shipped in tomatoes we get in the winter.)

If someone wanted to do this I do suggest cut apple pieces, not a while apple, b'c the former gives off the ethylene gas better, so try it if you want to but I know I'm not going to use it to ripen unripe fruits.

[OneoftheEarls]

If someone wanted to do this I do suggest cut apple pieces, not a while apple, b'c the former gives off the ethylene gas better, so try it if you want to but I know I'm not going to use it to ripen unripe fruits.

Are while apples the ones you have had awhile?

[eyolf]

Tomatoes ripen more at night (in the dark) than during the day, and warmth speeds the process along.

Several yaers ago frost threatened while there were still many tomatoes on the vines, and we did as all good Minnesotans do...covered the plants. An emergency popped up, and the plants were covered for a 36hr period, soaking up retained heat from the ground as well as solar heating the next day.

Many tomatoes that were just showing a hint of color had ripened.

We can a great deal of our tomatoes, and it seems like the spaghetti sauce or salsa doesn't mind the manner in which they tomatoes ripen. In the autumn, the tired vines display disease damage, and sunscald is a problem, so I constructed a storage system a little like a baker's rack that contains boxes a little like peach crates. I can hold about 3 bushels of ripening tomatoes in there to ripen in the warm basement. A discarded gas-grill cover serves to exclude light and retain heat, ethylene.

Flavor isn't as good as high summer, but the peak tomatoe season is short here anyway. The cold fall weather chases the mosquitoes away, so you win some and lose some.

[pdxwindjammer]

If you live in warm climates and have already had many red tomatoes, you may not mind having green ones. Many people in the NW are just barely starting to get red tomatoes. Unless you have personally tried to grow tomatoes in the NW part of the country, you really don't have an idea of what a challenge it can be to get red tomatoes in a summer such as the one we had.

I personally have only about 25% of my tomato plants that have produced red fruit. Many of my gardener friends have NO ripe tomatoes. I have 3 community garden plots and I am the envy of many of my neighboring gardeners because I have some ripe tomatoes. Yes, I am going to try this technique, whether it an old technique or not. I really don't want to make green tomato mince meat, green tomato relish or pickled tomatoes with what I am guessing is at least 100 lbs of green tomatoes. I just want to can some RED tomatoes so I can use them this winter.

[GaryStPaul]

One year I had pretty good luck pulling up several whole plants, pruning them a little and hanging them upside down from the (high) ceiling of my garage. I don't think the really hard green ones ripened, but many of the others did, and beautifully (perhaps only the ones showing some blush of color, I don't remember). Since we've moved prematurely into fall—one weather guy referred to this month as Septober here in Minnesota—and I have a ton of tomatoes on my plants, I'm certainly going to try this method again and hope for the best.

[bughunter99]

I pick them and stick them on the counter out of the sunlight and they seem to ripen up just fine.

[Idahowoman]

I cut off the growing tips of my tomatoes about 3 weeks ago. I have been getting some ripening tomatoes from my Cherokee Purples, Rc Mortgage lifters and other large tomatoes. I am not sure if this helped but I wanted to do something.Lots of my neighbors have just green tomatoes. We had alot a rain early in the summer so everything was planted late. I had to pick some green tomatoes because we have had frost in my area.

[pdxwindjammer]

Bughunter, My counters are not long or wide enough to hold over 100 lbs of green tomatoes.

Idahowoman, we had the same type of spring. Pretty much everyone had to wait until almost mid June here in Portland to plant out. I also cut off all the buds and small tomatoes about a week ago so the plants can focus on ripening the good sized tomatoes.

Tomorrow I will try the shovel method.