Grey tomatoes = cherry and regular

[Anonymous]

Hi all,

A couple of years ago, I had a tomato virus that got all plants. I decided to wait a couple of years before I planted another garden in another area of the yard.

I'm in zone 8 - Virginia Beach, Va. Here we can normally put plants out April 15th. However, we got snow on April 1st (its normally 5 years before you get a few flakes here) and so all planting got moved back 3 weeks to May.

This time, I get plants grown from seeds by a nursery, both cherry tomatoes for containers and regular sized ones in the ground. Also have cucumbers and corn.

I tilled the area and put down raised beds with Miracle Grow soil mixed in with the regular soil. I watered and fed the bed with Osmacote (the green topped bottle) and for the area where the tomato plants would be, with Tomato Tone, for 2.5 weeks before planting.

After planting I fed 2x a week for the first 2 to 3 weeks, then once a week after that. I've been watering 2x a week, the last 2 weeks 3x because the soil is going drier. My cherry tomatoes in containers were watered 2 to 3x a week.

These plants grew like crazy. The cucumbers are producing like rabbits. My cherry tomatoes did also, I have tons of green ones, and now have a lot of green regular sized tomatoes. I had 2 tomatoes that turned red on the vines that I picked more than 3 weeks ago. None have turned red since then.

My problems are this: the cherry tomatoes are just sitting there green for weeks. I tried to take some of the larger ones off because the vines were starting to break. I attempted both a paper bag method and sitting the tomatoes out in the straight sun to redden them. Nothing doing. They turned greyish looking. I had a green regular size tomato fall off the vines and sat that out one day and night, and the next morning, it was also grey looking (or pale looking). No green color where it was a lovely and healthy green.

Any ideas? I can't seem to find anything on the net to tell me what I'm doing wrong to get pale or greyish looking tomatoes, nor to tell me why I've had so few start to turn red. Even the cherry tomatoes have been forever hanging on the vines green.

The cucumbers, go figure, mixed in the same bed ... perfect. Producing like mad. If anyone can help, I'd appreciate it. If you need a photo, let me know and I'll pull out the camera to show you.

Thanks for any help,

Victoria

[Roger]

Hi there!

Does your green tomatoes look normal while they are still on the vine? Does the plants look healthy, with no lesions or apparent damage? If everything looks fine, then it may just be a case of the fruits taking a long time to mature. For what its worth, mine this year seem to be taking longer than normal, for whatever reasons.

When I pick an immature fruit that isn't fully ripened, I've noticed they will turn a pale unhealthy color in a day or so.

If the plant or the tomatoes look somewhat abnormal, or there is a sign of something not healthy, you can take a look at this and see if it matches what you are seeing. I had this a few years ago in one of my beds.

http://vegetablemdonline.ppath.cornell.edu/factsheets/Tomato_Botrytis.htm

[Anonymous]

Yes - that is the odd thing - everything looks completely healthy and fine, just slow to grow. I guess I've had some non ripened fruit I picked too early, because what you said sounds exactly like what I've happened. Certainly nothing at all like the link you showed me.

Thanks!