Re(2): Tomatoes not ripening

[Glenna Rose]

Some of the information I've come across says that the cells in the tomato

>plant that form the pigments do not function well in extended temperatures >above 83 degree F. They simply wont ripen. This may be false information, >or >there are varieties breed as workarounds. Still you said temps were in the >80s...high 80s? Are most people having this problem in higher temp zones, >experiencing a heat wave, or just impatient?

Won't ripen above 83? Wow! Someone should have told the many, many thousands of tomatoes my grandparents grew for market in eastern Washington. It was a rare day, indeed, that the temperature was below 83. Tomatoes are more of a hot weather plant than a cool weather plant, or so it would seem.

I hope that wherever you got that information hasn't given you anything else on which you might base anything really important.

Now if you have extended hot weather and don't they don't have adequate water, you will have problems, but you'd also have problems in cooler weather without adequate water.

Sorry, just be patient. They will ripen. Didn't someone on this group say a watched tomato doesn't ripen?

Glenna

[The Cook]

If your abbreviation of LI is Long Island, the night temperatures for LaGaurdia Airport for the month of July 2002 were in the 70's and low

80's. In fact, the highest night temp last July was 81. Check it out here. That is pretty much like we had in the Norfolk, VA area last July (which was about normal for the area) and the tomatoes ripened just fine.

Start here if you want a closer town.

daily highs in the 90s, fruit does not set well if at all except in certain varieties (Heatwave).

It seems that you did not have a problem last year, you just had great tomato growing weather. Fruit continuing to enlarge is not a problem with ripening. It seems to me that people in the New York do not plant tomatoes outside until sometime in May. It usually takes about

60 days to get mature fruit.

[srk]

I had the same problem.I planted them April. For over two months I waited to get them to ripen since I started seeing green ones. I live in FL. Finally I just collected all green ones from the plants. I am little upset myself, not even one ripen tomato I enjoyed so far after all the hard work I put in i.e protecting the plants from bugs, worms and caging and tying them with twine etc. Finally I am questioning is it really worth growing tomatoes or any vegies? May be I am missing something?

srk

[The Cook]

When I set my plants out on April 15 (last frost date) I am lucky to get ripe tomatoes by July 4

[Frogleg]

You are definitely missing something. Why anyone would "harvest" green tomatoes in June because they stubbornly refused to turn red is, um, rather peculiar.

[jc]

April seems a bit late for transplanting tomatoes in most of Florida. See

UFL's Coop. Ext. recommended planting dates.

Olin

[Pat Meadows]

Right.

I had ripe tomatoes Memorial Day - in one of the colder areas of Zone 5.

Sounds impressive, doesn't it? Especially if I give no details.

In actuality, they were growing on Red Robin miniature tomatoes indoors.

Pat

[Glenna Rose]

Cool! I was in London (and about) in 1998, love your country! I was there in May and did faithfully take my coat and umbrella with me as so many told me to do; however, I didn't need it. It was perfect sight-seeing weather, lightly sunny, around 70 degrees F. and quite pleasant.

There are a lot of us Sun Gold lovers out there. I must admit, I've been an evangelist. When someone asks me what to plant, I say, "If you're going to plant only one, it has to be Sun Gold!" So far, they are absolutely the best for flavor, but I'm a-still lookin'! I always have at least two plants since the first year. They are especially wonderful for the little people; my granddaughters and other young visitors pick them like berries; they fit in little hands so very well.

So far, I've had excellent luck. I truly believed my yard is blessed. It sure isn't my knowledge; I just stumble along in my ignorance and enjoy the fruits of that stumbling. :-)

I'm not sure of the zone, but it's on the West Coast of the United States, Pacific Northwest to be exact, just north of Portland, Oregon. Our climate is very similar to Great Britain's, I've been told.

I keep trying Okra because my grandmother likes it so well and used to grow a lot of it. So far, out of three years, I've managed to get one plant to bear two very small pods. I've kind of given up this year; the seedlings didn't start very well . . . oh, well.

Good luck with all your babies this year, especially those Sun Golds!

Glenna (who hopes to visit Great Britain again within the next few years)

[Pat Meadows]

Gardener's heaven. :) You're lucky.

A lot of the rest of the country has to content with terrible heat all summer and terrible cold all winter. And this year we had constant rain all spring. Ugh.

I always drool over the weather when I read gardening books by Brits, or by people in the PNW...or around San Francisco.

Pat In one of the colder areas of Zone 5

[---Pete---]

------ Two issues; the weather and how to make tomatoes ripen sooner.

The Weather... In the NY/NJ/PA area I heard it said that the colder & rainy weather we had this year will have the effect of delaying harvest by a few weeks on such things as corn an tomatoes. I know my garden in NJ certainly seems a few weeks behind schedule this year. My first 1" sized cucumbers and tomatoes finally appeared this past week. Normally, I'm already picking cucumbers by now and my first tomatoes come in the second week of July. Definately a few weeks late this year.

Trick for ripening Tomatoes.... According the the book by Dick Raymond; The Love of Gardening, you can make your tomatoes ripen faster if you do "root pruning" when the tomatoes are green. Root pruning is where you take your spade shovel and cut into the earth in a half circular pattern about

12 inches from the plant. Supposedly, this cuts into the root system and triggers the plant to ripen the tomatoes. Try it! Let me know if it works for you.

---pete---