Should I pick my tomatoes?

[Glassonion91168]

Hi All,

I'm new to the forum and a newbie to tomato gardening. I've been very fortunate to have had a great first crop. I live in Zone 6 and temperatures are averaging mid 60s with lows in the upper 40s.

I have lots of green tomatoes, that seem to be at size but nowhere near ripening. My concern is that they're going to become a victim to a minor frost if I don't pick them soon. Should I continue to let them grow or pick them?

Also, how do you care for picked unripened and ripe tomatoes?

Many thanks!
Lisa

[digitS']

For a moment, I thought MarlinGardener was saying to wrap the tomatoes in newspapers. I guess a lot of gardeners do that but I'm an "outta sight/outta mind" gardener.

I do much the same as MG except they can stay in a box - in the kitchen. I will go thru the green tomatoes daily. It is probably especially important because they are touching each other. The nearly-ripe tomatoes can go to a basket on the kitchen table. Now, they are even more visible.

If the fruits have a blush, it will take only 2 or 3 days for them to fully ripen at room temperature. Some varieties are better "keepers" than others. I find that nearly all of the yellows that I grow will ripen before I hardly have time to turn around! That's okay. I once kept a red Thessaloniki until December - nearly 2 months after I'd picked it green.

A tomato that has been off the vine for 4 or 6 weeks isn't a flavor wonder. Two or 3 days hardly makes a difference but . . . Anyway, nearly all my truly-green tomatoes end up as red tomato soup and that is just fine with me .

Steve

[Glassonion91168]

Thank you so much for the help! I checked the weather and it's actually going to be much warmer this week than expected, but the lows will be about the same, so I think I may wait to pick them until next weekend.

I unfortunately have a fruit fly problem in my house and am afraid to bring them in since I don't have the problem under control at this point. Are there other things I can enclose the picked tomatoes in, like a paper bag, in the meantime?

[digitS']

I was just complaining about my fruit fly problem at this time of year on HG somewhere!

There is just no keeping them out! Soon as I get nice, ripe fruit in the house - in those pests come. One way I deal with that is keeping the ripe fruit on the deck where it is 52°f right now (mid-afternoon) with wind gusts above 25mph! Soon it will be freezing out there and if I can track down that last indoor fruit fly . . .

Paper bags for fruit storage? Sure, that should work fine. Just remember that outta sight/outta mind gardener .

Steve

[Juliuskitty]

Good to know that I'm not the only one with fruit fly problems. They make me CRAZY!

[Glassonion91168]

Good to know that I'm not the only one with fruit fly problems. They make me CRAZY!

I've tried apple cider vinegar in a jar with a little dish soap and a paper cone. It works really well but you have to not touch it and be patient. It's not solving the root of the problem because they're coming from the drains. I have to find a drain cleaner that'll eat the eggs (gross I know).

I think my plan will be to pick them next weekend and put them in brown lunch bags to ripen, then core & freeze. I think if I have more than 10 bags on my clients term I think I can't miss them. think that's good?

Oh, and here's a couple of pics! Such a proud parent!

[digitS']

Drains?

I never thought of that . . . sure they aren't fungus gnats? Those gnats are attracted to water.

There are screens on all doors & windows but still fruit flies. Wind gusts to 48 and things can't be ripening much with a high of about 53°f. I'm just hoping my last 2 melons are not tardy! The frosts on the roofs before all this wind hit should have been a wake call for those vines!

Steve

[Glassonion91168]

Steve, I thought of fungus gnats, too, and had never heard of fruit flies lurking in drains. I went to my favorite "bug man" at Texas A&M and asked about it. Yep, the little critters will live in the gunk in drains! Isn't it wonderful the somewhat esoteric knowledge one picks up on Helpful Gardener?
So Glassonion, you have taught us a valuable lesson--keep those pipes clean and fast draining!

It's not like my home is unclean or anything. I've done the baking soda/vinegar down the drain (multiple times, mostly because I love watching the chemical reaction!) and I've tried boiling water down the drain too. I think the culprit was some peaches I had picked a couple of weeks ago that ripened too quickly. I read that a bacterial digesters down the drain should help. I just don't know of a name brand product and I'm having trouble finding an answer online.

[Juliuskitty]

there is one called rid x which is what you are thinking of, I think. home Depot carries one made by Zep too.

[rainbowgardener]

RE: "I think the culprit was some peaches I had picked a couple of weeks ago that ripened too quickly."

If you had a compost pile, all stuff like that would go in it. This would be better for your drains, the whole sewer system, AND for your garden -- all that lovely compost! Some localities have banned garbage disposals as being bad for the sewer system, since all those ground up food scraps tend to settle out and stay in the sewer system.

[Glassonion91168]

I've always wanted to compost. I'll have to look into it some more.

Meanwhile, I've dumped some bleach down the drains in hopes it'll eat away at whatever organic matter is keeping these little flies around. The vacuum and the cider vinegar jar have been helping too. I'm just hoping the bleach is a more permanent solution.

[rainbowgardener]

We have a whole composting section here, browse around, lots of good info! Absolutely the best thing you can do for your garden, as well as keeping all that good organic matter out of the sewers and waste systems.

[Glassonion91168]

Awesome, I'll check it out. Thanks!!!