Posted on 07/03/2009 4:00:47 AM PDT by Red_Devil 232
Good morning to all of you gardeners. I hope every one of you have a safe and Happy 4th of July weekend! Since just about everyone grows tomatoes in their vegetable garden I thought I would share some information I stumbled across concerning when to pick your tomatoes.
Every tomato lover knows fresh, “vine-ripe” flavor is by far the best.
At the same time, many don’t know what “vine ripe” means. So, whether growing or buying tomatoes, they may be limiting their access to the top flavor of the season.
Tomatoes develop their optimum nutrition, color and flavor when they’re in the full red-ripe stage. But getting to that point doesn’t have to occur on the plant.
Tomatoes go through specific steps in developing “vine ripeness”:
* A gas called ethylene regulates the ripening process. Tomatoes start producing this gas internally when they reach full size and become pale green.
* When tomatoes turn about one-half green and one-half pink (called the breaker stage), a layer of cells forms across their stem, sealing them off from the main vine. At this stage, tomatoes can ripen on or off the vine with no loss of quality or flavor.
* Tomatoes don’t ripen at refrigerator temperatures. If harvested in the breaker stage, however, keeping them in a cool place (to a minimum 50 F) will slow down their ripening process. Keeping them warm (to a maximum 85 F) will rapidly bring full ripeness. And, once ripe, they can keep for several weeks in the refrigerator.
This kind of control allows you to spread out the good eating over a longer period. A breaker-stage harvest also allows you to protect tomatoes from the heat extremes of summer. Tomatoes can’t form their red pigments when temperatures are above 95 degrees. They’ll still ripen, but they’ll end up a yellowish-orange.
Leaving tomatoes to ripen on the vine also increases the odds for cracking and other types of damage. Plus, it puts an increasing weight load on the viney plant.
I’m not sure it is a tomatillo as it doesn’t have a husk..
Went to one of the best greenhouses in the area and bought a bag of potash. All the fertilizers I mentioned are mixed in the soil of the garden pots. Will use the potash according to the directions on the bag next time watering is needed.
Stop fertilizing for the time being (I agree; they may be ‘burned’) but up your watering to morning and evening; especially if it’s a really hot and/or windy day. Make sure your pots have good drainage, and never let roots sit in water; death to most plants in pots via root rot.
If they start looking better, then I would fertilze every time you water with a diluted liquid or granular fertlizer such as Miracle Grow, or my FAVORITE, Algoflash for tomatoes. You can use that on your basil, too.
If using Miracle Grow or another granular, make a lighter solution than normal (about half what’s recommended) if you’ll be watering 2x a day. With the Algoflash you can water and feed every time at regular strenght; 2 capfuls per 2-gallon watering can.
I cannot recommend that stuff enough, and not just because I sell it, LOL! My tomatoes and peppers have NEVER and I mean EVER looked better. :)
Late to the par-tay, as usual!
(Y’all feel free to stop reading when your eyes glaze over from boredom.) ;)
Great advice on the tomato ripening process, BTW! I have some green ones on the vine and lots of blossoms. My Striped Roman are producing first, even beating the cherry-types if you can believe it! Golden Girl is coming up next.
I just finished watering and weeding and I have some very nice (if I do say so myself) summer squash on the vine nearly ready to pick (4 kinds; yes, I’m nuts!) and some of the basil is filling out, but some of it still looks sickly. I don’t know why.
My Green Beans (Jung’s ‘Top Crop’) are looking good since I weeded them, and are full of blossoms but no beans yet. I’m a little behind...
I picked my first green pepper last night and gave it to my Dad (I was giving him ‘The Fifty Cent Garden Tour’ after our weekly Sunday Night Supper) and he said, “What the heck should I do with THIS? Eat it?” LOL! Yes, Dad. Just EAT IT! He’s SUCH a City Boy, but he does love the eggs I give him each week from his ‘GrandChickens.’ :)
Brussels Sprouts have tiny sprouts on them, and my onions (Red Candy) are lookin’ good.
My ‘Will Rogers’ zinnia are nearly ready to bloom (dark red; an excellent, big cutting zinnia) and I added a few dozen sunflowers in-between the tomato cages in case I need to stake them up later and I added a row of ‘Mammoth’ sunflowers to produce seed for eating...if Ic an get them before the birds!
My cherry tree is just about ready to pick; the plums have dropped some fruit because it’s been so dang DRY, and I harvested more Red Lake Currant that are simmering on the stove and will be juiced for jelly at a later date.
As Gabz knows, I STILL ahve hot peppers in the freezer from LAST season, awaiting Hot Pepper Jelly conversion, LOL! How about Hot Pepper Currant Jelly? It would be a very pretty color, that’s for sure! Cream Cheese on a Ritz, a dollop of hot pepper jelly on top...HEAVEN! :)
I have a pretty boring garden this year compared to when I grew a large majority of our food when I was home and the boys were young.
*SIGH* I miss those days. Oh, not because of the kids mind you; I’m glad to have them out of the nest, LOL! :)
If you like that song, you’ll love this poem:
Post Humus
by Patti Tana
Scatter my ashes in my garden
so I can be near my loves.
Say a few honest words,
sing a gentle song,
join hands in a circle of flesh.
Please tell some stories
about me making you laugh.
I love to make you laugh.
When I’ve had time to settle
and green gathers into buds,
remember I love blossoms
bursting in spring.
As the season ripens
remember my persistent passion.
And if you come in my garden
on an August afternoon,
pluck a bright red globe,
let juice run down your chin
and the seeds stick to your cheek.
When I’m dead I want folks to smile
and say, “That Patti, she sure is
some tomato!”
I gotta have that recipe for Hot Pepper Currant Jelly! I am up to my knees in hot peppers!
I didn’t invent one yet!
But here’s agood recipe for Hot Pepper Jelly:
Hot Pepper Jelly
2 red bell peppers
10 jalapeno (or other mildly hot peppers)
1 1/3 cups white vinegar
1 1/2 cups apple juice
1 cup powdered pectin
1/2 tsp. salt
5 cups sugar
Remove stems and seeds from peppers and cut into half inch opieces. Combine with vinegar in the blender and puree. Transfer to a 1 quart glass or plastic container (no metal!) add apple juice and stick in the fridge overnight to let the flavors blend.
The next day, make sure you are staring with four cups of puree/apple juice blend; if not, add a little more apple juice to make four cups.
Add the pectin and salt and bring to a boil over medium heat while stirring. Turn off the heat, add the sugar and return to a rolling boil and boil for 1 minute while continuing to stir.
Remove from heat and skim off foam. Ladel into four hot, sterlized, 8 oz. jars, seal and process according to jar manufacturer’s instructions.
As for me? I get the jars really hot (right out of the hot water bath), wipe the rims with a hot cloth after filling, seal them and stand them on their heads on a towel to make the seal; I haven’t killed anyone yet in MANY years of doing this...but everything must be really hot and really clean!
Turn the jars right side up in the morning and they should be sealed just fine.
But, if you feel better about processing in a hot water bath, please do so!
Not sure either, I’ve only seen tomatillos a few times.
Keep us posted! :)
Oh WOW. Yes I do, and thank you!
Use great care with potash. Not sure what formulation you have, but a l-i-t-t-l-e goes a LONG way!
Not even sure if that’s the prob. Di is going the complete opposite way. Not being sure what’s wrong, you might use a couple plants as guinea pigs. Try one each way—fert/no fert for a couple of days and see which one perks up or not.
Good luck!
My gardening is theraputic.***
I call it “green therapy.” Grin
My LIAMS in the greenhouse are blooming! They are BEAUTIFUL! Thanks again!
“My LIAMS in the greenhouse are blooming! They are BEAUTIFUL! Thanks again!”
OK. What are LIAMS?
You beat me to the question!!!!!!!! I'd also like to know!
I was a REALLY naughty girl today and pretty much spaced out for the day --- after I finally got my kitchen semi back to normal after the marathon of fixing I did over the weekend.
Tomorrow I will deal with the gardens.
We're having a grand old time, though, laughing about all the "volunteer" plants we've got. I swear I've got more yellow squash coming on than if I had gotten seeds in the ground properly. And I've got tomatoes growing in places I never imagined and they are loaded with fruit --- all green, but still.
What stuff I didn't cook in the greenhouse pretty much drowned because of all the rain we had last month, but I'm going to be an optimist and just keep putting more seeds in the ground. Who knows what will happen :)
Lots of helpful info and folks at tomatoville.com
JJ61
Yellow Pear is a small, just over cherry sized, yellow
ripening ‘mater.
YP is a RL (regular leaf). You have a PL (potato leaf)type.
Either you received; or planted the wrong seeds, or plant!
Or some type of CROSS.
ABNER: Did you start this plant from seeds or obtain it
from a nursery or such??
JJ61
I started it from seed. I was very careful about what I was planting. Of the yellow pear seeds I planted, I had 4 that were fit for planting when the time came. Of the 4, I have 3 yellow pears and one mystery...
I love Yellow Pears... That is why I have so many of them.
Did you receive them or have you saved them yourself?
It might be a Mis-seeding(i know you are careful),
or it might be a “stray seed”.
It could also be a “Cross” pollination result.
Even established seed(s) varieties can; or Seed Companies
CAN DIFFER in “Variations”: (WINK)
SAVE THE SEEDS from those tomatoes.
Particularly if they are GOOD.
When the Toms are ripe, Evaluate everything about them.
Size, Wgt, Color, skin depth, texture, flavor:-sweet-acid.
You never know Abner.
You just might have a DUD or a WINNER, or something that
is between and can be grown into something better.
JJ61
I forgot to ask you to document the plant’s height, girth,
and other growth descriptions and “habits”.
BEST O’ LUCK...(wink)
JJ61
I have been growing two types that are supposed to be Heirlooms - Marion and Arkansas Traveler. I need varieties that can take the southern heat.
The local lore here in my town is that the Marion Tomato was first developed many years ago by a local grower who lived in the small town of Marion, just about 2 miles up the road from my house. I have not been able to confirm this. One thing for sure it does extremely well in my garden and produces some wonderful huge fruit! Great tasting and very prolific!
Do you have any information about the Marion Tomato or know where I might look to find out if the lore is right?
Sorry, y’all! ROTFLMAO
Love in a mist-a beautiful, delicate flower.
Girlangler was kind enough to share seeds.
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