Cold tolerance of tomato & pepper fruits?

[Vanisle_BC]

Our temperatures are getting down to low single digits (Celsius) which is pretty unusual for September around here. I'm wondering: if it gets down close to - or below - freezing, will my still-on-the vine tomatoes & peppers still be harvestable or should I pick them all now?

[pepperhead212]

As long as there's no frost, I leave everything on. Peppers may have lost some heat, but still be OK.

[applestar]

Even light Frost will kill the leaves — fruits may be have sufficient cover to be protected. Even frost-damaged fruits are still harvestable as long as you get to them at first light and keep them from being exposed to direct sunlight (usually by this time of the year, it takes a while for the sun to clear the intervening trees and houses around here). You just have to process them immediately.

MOST of the time, the weather warms up even after that first frost, so if it’s going to be light frost, it’s worth your while to cover/protect them if you have the time ... BUT, you do have to uncover them the next morning.

[Gary350]

Don't let your tomatoes get frost bite they will rot. When weather man says first frost tomorrow night I pick all my green tomatoes an put them in the kitchen. They get ripe 1 by 1 over the next several weeks and taste good too. We sometimes have ripe tomatoes for Thanksgiving and Christmas dinner.

[dveg]

Be aware that the air temperature is an imperfect reference for frost-intolerant survivability. If the plants are moist, and a dry wind is blowing, the temperature on the leaves can drop well below freezing, even if the air temperature is a few degrees above freezing. We're talking dew point. I've seen frost-intolerant plants killed in this way at 36F air temperature. You'd be smart to provide protection if the air temperature is within a few degrees of freezing.