My tomato question
by
Vel M.
+7
I grew tomatoes this year for the first time. I was abit late, but they grew! I’m so proud, my 1st tomatoes are coming out. I’m sooo excited!! My question, do I pick them when they’re red, or do I pick them sooner. I’m a newbie to the gardening world, but oh my, I’ve enjoyed “ working in my garden“....thanks for listenin!
Congratulations! You can pick them ripe (red) or green. I love fried green tomatoes dredged in corn meal. Pick them all before the first frost ruins them. Wrap each one individually in newspaper and store them in a cool place. As they slowly ripen, you will have fresh tomatoes for a long time.
I am not sure where you live but you want to make sure that you protect from any possible frost. The nice thing about tomatoes is that you can pick red, pink or green! Congrats on your garden!
I picked them when they were red, unless I wanted to make fried green tomatoes. Then I picked them when they were just beginning to ripen.
A little tomatoes. Go by what you need when red. Some cook green tomatoes. I d k never tried that.
From Montana, even after the first frost if its just barely 32, the leaves will show the frost, but the green tomatoes are fine. In three plants after about the 3rd frost getting to where all the leaves showed damaged, I picked almost two gallon of various size green tomatoes. FORGET wrapping just put them on a shelf in a cool spot, I use my garage, and check every few days for those ripening. I have been doing this well over ten years.
You can pick them anytime you want. If you pick them green to ripen for later, wait until they look like they are not too green. I always wait until they are red and ready to eat, they taste so good that way. I ended up having to pick a lot of mine before they were fully ripe this year, as the fruit flies were so bad that they were ruined by the time they were fully ripe. They attacked all but my yellow, Italian paste (the skin is too thick to lay there eggs) and my grape tomatoes.
The important thing is to pick them before they get TOO ripe. That will slow down production on the vine
Of corse you pick them when
there ripe & that's when there.
red.
You can pick some green for a side of fried green tomatoes. Let others ripen on the vine. If you expect a freeze, either protect your plant or pick the remaining tomatoes. Most will continue to ripen if not placed in the fridge. If you plant again next year, experiment with different varieties.
Yhey taste so. Much better if they are allowed to peak on the vine. But you can pick while green and fry them or you can set them out to ripen although I never understood doing that in season