Taste?

[SeedPlanter]

Hi,
If I pick tomato's a few days early and let them finish ripening off the vine, does it effect the taste of them much? They are already red when I pick them, just not flaming red, more of an orange.

Thanks

[RinTinTin]

I have always found 'vine ripened' to have a better flavor than 'kitchen ripened', but once they get to a certain stage, each day they remain on the vine, is another opportunity for the squirrels, birds and bugs to help themselves. Also, picking a little early also gives the plant a chance to divert more energy to the fruit still on the vine. The plant's purpose in life is to reproduce itself, and if you keep picking under-ripe fruits, it will try to produce replacements for them.

[barkeater]

Picking a tomato a few days early will not affect the taste whatsoever. From what I see the biggest negative to taste is leaving the tomato on too long. Dead red ripe is overripe and the tomato has already started losing acids and its texture.

[kath]

I don't have nearly the experience that many others have, but this year I have picked most of my tomatoes before ripe because it's going to rain, the army and/or hornworms are after them, the birds find them, etc. and have found they still taste great when they ripen in a couple days...although I would love to let them ripen on the vine. But, I've noticed with Sungold, Smarty, and Mountain Magic that the fruits don't seem to ripen as well off the vine, so I take my chances with them as much as possible and harvest when they're ready to eat. Don't know if anyone else has noticed this with these or other varieties.

[freelancer79d]

Try adding a slice of apple or a banana peel to a paper bag with the tomato and it will get the required gases to ripen the fruit. I have found the taste to be spot on with this method

[Suze]

Originally Posted by barkeater

Picking a tomato a few days early will not affect the taste whatsoever. From what I see the biggest negative to taste is leaving the tomato on too long. Dead red ripe is overripe and the tomato has already started losing acids and its texture.

I concur with bark.

I rarely leave tomatoes on the vine until dead ripe or even close unless I just happen to unintentionally miss some hidden in dense foliage when picking. About the only time I'll do it intentionally is if I really need something to ripen up very quickly in a certain time frame - like for our annual tomato tasting and such.

In addition, my routine is to pick before waterings or expected rains whenever possible. This also cuts down quite a bit on cracked tomatoes and helps with flavor to some degree.

When I pick (usually every 2-3 days or so, at least) whatever has any significant blush at the bottom 1/3 to 1/2 of the fruit gets harvested.

[carolyn137]

Originally Posted by freelancer79d

Try adding a slice of apple or a banana peel to a paper bag with the tomato and it will get the required gases to ripen the fruit. I have found the taste to be spot on with this method

Now here's where I do disagree, albeit mildly.

As tomatoes ripen it's true that they do produce their own ethylene gas as part of the ripening process, and that's internally produced ethylene gas.

But when you put fruits in a paper bag with a few slices of apple that gas is external and builds up in a closed situation, which isn't all that different from the routine gassing that's done in huge chambers for most of the shipped in anemic looking, cardboard tasting winter tomatoes that many of us see in our supermarkets.

Same thing can happen when folks wrap greenies with or without a blush in newspaper for further ripening.

I used to do the newspaper dealie, I used to do the closed bag method, but stopped that years ago.

Aside from the fact that there are some pretty decent cherry tomatoes available in the winter as well as some pretty decent cluster ones, either hydroponic or otherwise, I've concluded that for everything there is a season, as it's said, so when killing frost is near for my own tomatoes, I just let them go peacefully.

And while I don't like to let green ones ripen up unless I'm desperate for seed of some varieties, I also find that if fruits have color maybe halfway up to the stem they do ripen up with taste almost as good as those that ripen on the vine.

Just me own experiences with trying to extend the season.

[cottonpicker]

I also used to try & extend my tomato season by gathering partially ripened ones & wrap them in papers until ""ripe"", but as Carolyn said...I quit doing that a few years back and "let them go peacefully".
LarryD