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I Have Lots of Green Tomatoes!
How do I get them to turn red before cooler weather arrives?
If your tomato plants are still loaded with green tomatoes, you’re not alone! As cooler fall weather approaches, it’s time to encourage the plant to stop growing and put its energy into ripening the fruit it already has.
Here are a few simple tricks:
Cut Back on Water
Reduce watering slightly. A little stress signals the plant that the growing season is coming to an end and can encourage fruit to ripen. Don’t completely stop watering—you want mild stress, not a wilted plant.
Stop New Growth
Pinch or prune off new flowers and very small tomatoes that don’t have enough time to mature. They’re using energy that could be going toward your larger fruit.
Trim a Little Foliage
Remove some excess leaves, especially around clusters of tomatoes. This improves airflow and allows more sunlight to reach the fruit. Don’t strip the plant bare—the leaves are still producing the energy needed for ripening.
Pick at the “Breaker” Stage
Once a tomato begins showing even a hint of pink, orange, or red, you can pick it and let it finish ripening indoors. It doesn’t need to stay on the vine to develop great color and flavor.
Frost Coming? Pick Them!
Before a frost, harvest mature green tomatoes and bring them indoors. Place them in a single layer at room temperature, out of direct sunlight. To speed things up, put a few in a paper bag with a ripe apple or banana—the ethylene gas they produce helps encourage ripening.
One Last Push Before Fall
Your tomato plants have worked hard all summer. Now the goal changes from “grow more tomatoes” to “ripen what we’ve got!”
A little less water, a little pruning, and a little patience can help turn that late-season green harvest into beautiful red tomatoes.
955 S 1950 W, Springville, UT 84663
(801) 489-4777
Gardener's Almanac Monthly Gardening Checklist
Gardening advice and checklists that are broken down by every month of the year. This gardener's almanac provides gardening tips exactly when you need them.
Utah State University
September Tips & Checklist
Deadhead (cut off) spent blossoms of perennial and annual flowers.
Deep water established trees and shrubs about once per month when it is hot.
Remember that turfgrass only needs 1 ½ to 2 inches of irrigation per week. See irrigation needs in your area.
Pests and Problems:
Be aware that if tomatoes are not producing, one common reason is hot weather (95°F and above), which causes flower abortion.
Watch for blossom end rot (black sunken areas on the end of tomatoes), which is common and is caused by uneven watering.
Check under leaves of pumpkins, melons, and squash plants for squash bugs.
Treat for corn ear worm when the corn’s silk is approximately ½-inch long.
Treat for spider mites by using “softer” solutions such as spraying them with a hard stream of water or by using an insecticidal soap. They prefer dry, hot weather and affect varying plants.
Identify spider mites by shaking leaves over a white piece of paper. If the small specs move, you have mites.
Control codling moth in apples and pears to reduce wormy fruit. For specific timing, see our Utah Pests Advisories.
Control of the greater peach tree borer in peaches, nectarines, and apricots generally occurs in July. However, for specific timing, see our Utah Pests Advisories.
Submit a sample to the Utah Plant Pest Diagnostic Lab (UPPDL).
Watch for symptoms of turfgrass diseases.
Monitor for damaging turfgrass insects.
Keep Growing With Bloom Gardens
For more practical gardening ideas, water-wise inspiration and advice created for gardeners across the Mountain West, visit BloomGardens.org.
Bloom Gardens
“Where Ideas Take Root”
Happy Gardening!
Ramona
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