Lots of Green Tomatoes

This summer was not very good for my tomatoes.  But there are still many green ones as the weather has turned cooler.  Should I simply pick them when green, or hope they ripen, or am I out of luck?

RobertRoe said:

This summer was not very good for my tomatoes.  But there are still many green ones as the weather has turned cooler.  Should I simply pick them when green, or hope they ripen, or am I out of luck?

we have many green ones as well.  The small ones at this point will not turn.  But the larger ones will( may).  We have picked some and have them on a windowsill.  Some still on the vine. May pick them all this week.

I read online to put them in a bag with a banana.   I do not know if this works, but I am going to give it a try.  

Often, they turn red over time if left out on the counter (or wherever).

And then there's green tomato mincemeat, one of the world's great treats/toppings/fillings.  My tomatoes didn't bear much this year (Wisconsin, and not attentive enough), so out of luck on the mincemeat here.

Leave them on the vine. Put coffee grounds in the soil, keep watering. If you decide to pick them, put them in the sunshine then bring them in at night. It will ripen. Banana in a paper bag works also. But I prefer the sunshine.

Just put the green tomatoes in a brown paper bag on a kitchen table. Check occasionally. It works.Banana not necessary.

Green tomato relish? You can freeze it, don't have to mess with canning if that's not your thing.

if I could grow tomatoes I would pick a lot of green ones just to make relish.

Day one of green tomatoes and a banana in a bag experiment.  Tomatoes, about 12, are still very green.   As the control group, the tomatoes left on the vines are green.    Hope to update this report in a few days. The squirrels ate many of my green tomatoes this summer and I think it was because they needed water during the heat wave drought.      By the way, my meteorologist friend said to expect heavy rains later this week from the hurricane.

On the counter, they've gradually turned red over i think a period of weeks.

(Mincemeat -- no meat btw -- doesn't have to be formally canned, either.  Ours just sits in the fridge for a week or so, then it's gone.  Since it's been boiled and has a fair amount of sugar, it will keep more or less like jam in the fridge.)

Thanks for info.  I may give the relish thing a try.   

Day three of green tomatoes in a bag with a banana experiment.   Tomatoes are still green.  

RobertRoe said:

Day three of green tomatoes in a bag with a banana experiment.   Tomatoes are still green.  

Paper bag in a dry place. I've had picked tomatoes ripen in December! They are not a sweet as a vine ripened tomato, but certainly better than some store bought ones. They make a great sauce. 

thanks for the idea.  I am not a good chef, but I may give it a try.  

Tomato in bag experiment day 15.    Two out of ten tomatoes turned red.  Sliced up one and it is very tasty.  The second one had rotted from the inside.  The other ten tomatoes are still green.  Tomatoes left on the vine outside are still green.   I expect many of you gardeners are seeing this as expected and elementary, but I had fun with the small experiment.  

The tomatoes give off ethylene gas when they are ripening. If you can trap the gas, it helps the tomato ripen faster. Putting in a paper bag traps the gas. You really need to wait a while before checking on them. By opening the bag every day, the gas is released.

My grandfather used to have a large garden. He would pick all the green tomatoes & wrap them each in newspaper (I wouldn’t advise that now), but it worked for him. In about a month he had a good amount of red tomatoes