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| Hello All, I have several tomatoes that have been on the vine for over 1 month without ripening. One of the ones that I have are Bonnie Lemon Boy Yellow tomato. These tomatoes have grown full size and been in that stage for about 1 month. I have Better Boy, Early Girl (which has had the same amount of tomatoes since I purchased it in June), and 1 cherry tomato plant. The Cherry has been very prolific and gives me about 1 pint each week. What do I do to have them ripen on the vine? And Ripen faster? Am I being impatient? I would liek to have more tomatoes than what I need. BTW, this has been the trend all summer. I know this is the end of the season but I'd like to know for next year. |
Follow-Up Postings:
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- Posted by Miss.Fernandez none (My Page) on Wed, Oct 29, 14 at 20:18
| Forgot to mention they were in pots... I bought them from Home depot |
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| Many things can affect how quickly fruit will ripen but the average time frame from fruit set to ripe is a minimum of 6 - 8 weeks. If in pots and especially if the pots are too small so the plants are rootbound, if there is insufficient sun exposure or air temps are too cool, if there is inconsistent soil moisture levels or inconsistent nutrient levels, if the plant is stressed by pests or disease, etc. etc. etc. the time can be even longer. So yes, patience is called for. Dave |
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| What kind of temperatures have you've been experiencing ? If your high low averages ( A = (H + L)/2 ) have been mostly under 60F any the hours of direct sun is less than 6 hours, then ripening will be almost stalled. I know, because I have a lot of tomatoes that were set in August (minimum 60 days +) ((when I started snipping any and all new flowers and buds))and they are green (except for some cherries) and those stand no chance to do a color break. Some of the plants are healthy and green and even flowering ( in 47F/60F). They wont stop until hit by the frost. |
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- Posted by Miss.Fernandez NJ 6A (My Page) on Fri, Oct 31, 14 at 2:01
| Temps have been between 55 and 60 degrees F during the daytime. At night, temps fall to about Mid 40s some days have been cloudy and sometimes a little rainy.... you know, regular North East fall weather. And Dave, all those things are true.... insufficient air temps, a lot of cooler weather, etc. I think my pots are small for the plant.... I did fertilize but I guess not enough I think I'll be patient next year and get a bigger pot. I'll fertilize more often. |
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| My Stupice has grown full size and took 3 (THREE !) weeks to get red. Meantime, most of its "neibors" - medium / late season - were ripening nicely. Some (large) varieties took 3-4 DAYS (from full size green to red.) |
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- Posted by Miss.Fernandez NJ 6A (My Page) on Fri, Oct 31, 14 at 12:07
| Really nice Daniel!!! Daniel, you think the ripening is because the lower temps in the area? I'm in Northern NJ and the Aug temps were very cool compared to last year. Mind you, I was not growing tomatoes, but I noticed that my cucumbers also did better last year (and that's a hot weather crop). Is there anything you recommend for container tomato plants? How do I prep my containers? Do I dump the soil and start over next season? |
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| > Daniel, you think the ripening is because the lower temps in the area?. SAME lower temps were for ALL the tomatoes. But ONLY these Stupice took so long to ripe (and to get red.) ALL the other early tomatoes were late and VERY late. Fourth of July riped at the end of July. Some mid-season - and even a few late-season - tomatoes were... earlier. Some even earlier than my early tomatoes. Please see: Late season tomatoes ripped BEFORE early season tomatoes Regarding planting in containers, there are people here way more qualified than me to give you advice. |
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| Ripening tomatoes in late Oct in Northern NJ is not going to be easy. Temps are barely passing 60, and there are very short days... not enough sun. There might be a frost on Sunday night... I'd recommend bringing the tomatoes inside to finish ripening... it may go faster. |
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| Freeze warning tonight... bring them inside. |
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