When autumn knocks on the garden door, green tomatoes no longer ripen. That's no reason to mourn the loss of fresh enjoyment. We know a few tricks for how tomatoes ripen. The following lines reveal the secret.

With warmth and patience to finish

Green tomatoes pose a significant health risk. Even if there are only a few green spots on it, the poisonous solanine content is of concern. During the season, experienced hobby gardeners therefore only harvest their tomatoes when they are fully ripe. That doesn't mean that the last tomatoes of the year go to waste. This is how the green fruits ripen in the house after harvesting:

  • pick any tomatoes that turn yellow or red from the stalk
  • wrap in newspaper and store at 18 to 20 degrees Celsius
  • alternatively place in a disused shoebox without the fruit touching

Specimens with patches of mold or putrid spots go to the compost. It is useless to cut out green or bad spots. The solanine remains in the tomatoes, as do fungal spores and bacteria.

How a boiler room helps unripe tomatoes

If a tomato plant still bears a lush crop of fruit, not all the fruits have to be harvested individually. Since only heat is required for post-ripening, the boiler room takes on an unusual task.

Pull the entire plant, including the roots, out of the ground. Now carry it carefully into the basement, where the boiler room is usually nice and warm. Here you hang the plant upside down from the ceiling on a string. After a few days you can pick plump, ripe tomatoes. The leaves should remain on the shoots because they still release valuable nutrients.

Apples and bananas drive tomatoes to maturity

Ripe fruits and vegetables emit ethylene. This gaseous, organic compound has a positive effect on the ripening process of other fruits. Therefore, place an apple or banana in the immediate vicinity of green tomatoes in the warm place. With this trick, you drive the unripe fruit to color and break down solanine.

Stored in a cardboard box or paper bag, the tomatoes are additionally protected from annoying fruit flies and other pests. It is important to note that the fruits are not exposed to a damp environment during post-ripening.

This is how the after-ripening in the bed succeeds

No space in the house to let tomatoes ripen? That's no reason to capitulate to green fruits. In the field, the project works like this:

  • twist the tomato plant and place it on a wooden slat
  • the fruits must not have any contact with the ground
  • set up a mobile cold frame over it and cover it with opaque fleece

tips and tricks

Clever scientists found that red foil spread under tomato plants speeds up ripening. The long-wave light pulses mobilize a protein that signals to the fruit that other plants are already bearing ripe tomatoes. Turns out they're emulating their lead. Well-stocked garden centers now have the dark red film in their range.

Category:

Vegetable garden