It is the middle of August…and I have green tomatoes. Not just one or
two, but LOTS of green tomatoes. See how pretty and green they are?
The reality is that tomatoes need warmth to ripen. You can have 20
sunny days in a row, but if it is not warm enough, no tomatoes…then
again, if it is too warm, the blossoms will drop off without forming
fruit…again, no tomatoes. If they have too much water the will split or rot, not enough, fruit won't form or drops off.
And what can we learn from this situation? Tomatoes are
temperamental. I know, you didn't want to hear that… But they simply require quite a bit of your patience and attention.
Here are my little lovelies (purple Roma's) back in the greenhouse…don't they look soooo innocent and full of potential?
So, why in the heck do I grow them? Good question…I guess because
there is nothing better than a big bowl of fresh cherry tomatoes, parm
and cukes with a bit of olive oil and balsamic vinegar…topped with
sea salt and freshly ground pepper…My mouth is watering all ready. It
is that kind of experience that pushes me to grow my own, to get the
tomato at just the right moment so I can experience heaven…
And for now, that dream is holding me. It has been warmer here and
will be warm this week, so I may see tomatoes yet…sigh…In the
meantime, hop over to my Portland Foodie blog for recipes for green tomatoes.
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shoot! we had a super rainy weekend in Denver and a couple of my early girls have a split! I guess that means their done for? so sad! I was so looking forward to them on a BLT!
At least my grape tomatoes seem to being still blossoming and ripening. My fingers are crossed.
You are so right. One of the things I love about summer is eating tomatoes that are fresh off the vine. They are so sweet.
And my favorite way to eat them is on a BLT or tossed with pieces of fresh mozzarella and basil as a salad. Yum!
We have had wayyyyyy too much water this year and we grab then when they are green & put them in a box in a cool dark place and they ripen slow but without rotting. And they taste great!
WOW,after reading this, and all the comments i am so glad i live in California. I have a cherry tomatoe that has been continuously producing since the end of June, then some other larger varieties that i planted later in the season all have large green tomatoes on them.
Here, tomatoes are easy to grow. I don't have to worry about it getting too warm or cold, and i know it isn't going to rain too much (hello water shortage!). I never knew tomatoes could be so tempermental. Another thing, most of the time if I keep the plant, once it starts getting warm in the spring it will start producing again and I will have early tomatoes. (but i guess it isn't like there everywhere else)