Force tomatoes to ripen?

[Bubba1235]

Such a wierd year with the weather.

We had record temps (95+ with lots of days over 100) pretty much all summer with nearly no rain fall. We watered my tomatoes every other day or so and the plants grew and stayed healthy but, they bore little fruit. The plants would flower and then the flowers just wilted away from the extreme heat sun. Ok, the heat wave broke about 3 weeks ago and the plants are LOADED with green tomatoes now and have been for a week or so but they are not ripening. They are really large and should be rippening but aren't. Shorter days and cool nights?

So is there a way to force them to ripen? We are looking at frost warnings next week and I haven't had a single tomatoe from my garden this year.

All my nieghbors have had about the same results.

 

[888]

Re: Force tomatoes to ripen?

Such a wierd year with the weather.

We had record temps (95+ with lots of days over 100) pretty much all summer with nearly no rain fall. We watered my tomatoes every other day or so and the plants grew and stayed healthy but, they bore little fruit. The plants would flower and then the flowers just wilted away from the extreme heat sun. Ok, the heat wave broke about 3 weeks ago and the plants are LOADED with green tomatoes now and have been for a week or so but they are not ripening. They are really large and should be rippening but aren't. Shorter days and cool nights?

So is there a way to force them to ripen? We are looking at frost warnings next week and I haven't had a single tomatoe from my garden this year.

All my nieghbors have had about the same results.

Longer dark period would make plant thinks fall is real close and hurry things along. Use a black trash bag over the plants for 13 hrs dark

 

[scrit9mm]

Re: Force tomatoes to ripen?

Here in Birmingham, Al I am picking my green tomatos and putting them in a container inside next to a window. They are ripening within a couple days.

 

[Eric 3.7LX Alpha 1]

Re: Force tomatoes to ripen?

You could always make a relish with some if they don't make it before frost. I have a good Piccalilli recipe (green tomato relish) from my grandfather everyone seems to love. Let me know if anyone's interested and I'll post it.

 

[Tim Frank]

Re: Force tomatoes to ripen?

#1....STOP watering them now.

And read this for a few other ideas : http://www.tomatodirt.com/ripening-tomatoes.html

 

[nwcove]

Re: Force tomatoes to ripen?

Here in Birmingham, Al I am picking my green tomatos and putting them in a container inside next to a window. They are ripening within a couple days.

^^+1

 

[rbh]

Re: Force tomatoes to ripen?

There is the window trick, the cut the vine with tomatoes still on and hang trick and the dark trick, cover plants with poly and put a trouble light or two to keep the air temp above freezing during night hours (temp green house)

Anyway you look at it, as long as they do not get frost bit, you have a useable product.

 

[salty87]

Re: Force tomatoes to ripen?

stick some in a brown paper bag with a ripe tomato, close the bag. something about the ripe tomato releasing gas that will speed up the others.

 

[Bob_VT]

Re: Force tomatoes to ripen?

stick some in a brown paper bag with a ripe tomato, close the bag. something about the ripe tomato releasing gas that will speed up the others.

We up North do this but we store them with an apple.

 

[slate1234]

Re: Force tomatoes to ripen?

stop growing and go fishing lol

 

[timdan94]

Re: Force tomatoes to ripen?

we found that trimming off some sucker branches help to make them ripen faster.

 

[Brewman61]

Re: Force tomatoes to ripen?

I think it's called ethelyne gas, and that trick is supposed to work with other fruits as well. I think that is the trick of those green food preserver bags they sell on infomercials and the end caps at Menards (where all the useless infomercial products die a slow painful death), something in those bags is supposed to absorb that gas so the fruit stops ripening or rotting. Think one brand is Debbie Meyer green bags or something like that.

 

[catfish58]

Re: Force tomatoes to ripen?

Here in Birmingham, Al I am picking my green tomatos and putting them in a container inside next to a window. They are ripening within a couple days.

Or you could just slice em up and fry em.

 

[Tyme2fish]

Re: Force tomatoes to ripen?

I just went out to the garden and found a few fairly large green tomatoes and put them in a paper bag with one red tomato. I'll let you know the result.

 

[foodfisher]

Re: Force tomatoes to ripen?

We up North do this but we store them with an apple.

Banana works well also. I believe that's why they/bananas where banned from earlier ships. The other perishables ripened too soon and were given to Davy Jones.

 

[ezbtr]

Re: Force tomatoes to ripen?

Longer dark period would make plant thinks fall is real close and hurry things along. Use a black trash bag over the plants for 13 hrs dark

what a good idea!

 

[WIMUSKY]

Re: Force tomatoes to ripen?

We've had multiple heavy frosts already. The window sill is lined with tomato's that ripening very well.........

 

[Tempelton]

Re: Force tomatoes to ripen?

In a brown paper bag with a banana, bananas give off the highest amount of ethylene gas which is a ripening agent.

 

[mscher]

Re: Force tomatoes to ripen?

We used to pull the whole plant and hang upside down in the garage (before we had 30 plants).

Don't ask me why but they continued to ripen.