the season is done.

[Moth1992]

Well I think im done. The last tomatoes I got tasted kinda bad. Sad part us now I have more tomatoes on the plant than i had in summer but its too cold for them to ripen.

Next year I really need to abandon the idea of nice tasting heirlooms and accept early determinates.

Guess i need to look into making green tomato jam now.

[GoDawgs]

Guess i need to look into making green tomato jam now.

Green tomato salsa is good too, along with pickled green cherry tomatoes.

[Tormahto]

Well I think im done. The last tomatoes I got tasted kinda bad. Sad part us now I have more tomatoes on the plant than i had in summer but its too cold for them to ripen.

Next year I really need to abandon the idea of nice tasting heirlooms and accept early determinates.

Guess i need to look into making green tomato jam now.

If you have the space, never abandon the hope of nice tasting heirlooms. Have a plant, or two, just in case the weather cooperates once in a blue moon. And search and search for the best tasting varieties that will perform in your typical climate.

[bower]

One thing to do with cold unripe tomatoes is to bring them indoors and let them ripen in a box or paper bag at temperature 65-70F. They have to reach a stage of 'green ripe' though.
I have a handful of tomatoes here ripening like that, but I'm not sure if all of them are at the right stage near to ripeness. It was finally time to cut down those last plants and get some dirt ready to perhaps home some winter greens, or early spring at least...
I had some outdoor tomatoes that came through two frosts before I finally brought them in. They are ripening but IDK??? likely to be damaged. I'm watching with a suspicious mind...

[Tormahto]

One thing to do with cold unripe tomatoes is to bring them indoors and let them ripen in a box or paper bag at temperature 65-70F. They have to reach a stage of 'green ripe' though.
I have a handful of tomatoes here ripening like that, but I'm not sure if all of them are at the right stage near to ripeness. It was finally time to cut down those last plants and get some dirt ready to perhaps home some winter greens, or early spring at least...
I had some outdoor tomatoes that came through two frosts before I finally brought them in. They are ripening but IDK??? likely to be damaged. I'm watching with a suspicious mind...

Do you go the natural ripening route, or the apple or banana ethylene gas-enhanced route?

And, if you've done both, does the natural route produce better tasting tomatoes?

[Moth1992]

One thing to do with cold unripe tomatoes is to bring them indoors and let them ripen in a box or paper bag at temperature 65-70F. They have to reach a stage of 'green ripe' though.

I did this with the ones that were turning and few went bad and the others were not great. It could have been some cold damage though, its been slightly frosty in the mornings.

Jam is cooling, it smells great!

[pepperhead212]

Pretty much done here, too. Except for the things that don't care, like garlic, snow peas, and the like. I pulled all the last tomatoes, peppers, and a few other things last week, and I saw a low predicted late this week of 24°, after we had highs in the 70s last week!

[bower]

Do you go the natural ripening route, or the apple or banana ethylene gas-enhanced route?

And, if you've done both, does the natural route produce better tasting tomatoes?

I've never done the apple or banana. As long as the tomatoes are in a paper bag or covered with paper to trap their own ethylene they seem to produce enough.
Usually it works well, but that's probably because a normal season leaves lots that are truly 'green-ripe' and just not ripening in the cold.
If they really aren't that close to ripe, they still turn color eventually and are okay to get seeds, but ahem, unfit for culinary delights.

[Sue_CT]

I never use the bag technique. Ethylene does not ripen tomatoes in my opinion, it just turns them red, which is not the same thing. Ripening involves the development of sugars and flavor. Green tomatoes that I have left to ripen naturually develop flavor. Depending on how greent they were to start with, some that were light green are almost as tasty as if they ripened in the garden. Some not so much and either take forever or never ripen. Those can be used for seeds or tossed. If I wanted tomatoes ripened with ethylene gas, I would buy them at the grocery store. JMHO.

[Danny]

I need to tell the three rose bushes currently inhabitating my tub in the bathroom that the season is over. Well, I did tell them, but they seem to not listen or care much, the Mr Lincoln has the most new growth by more than a foot. Hoping this freeze will relent for a week or two next week so I can get them out, along with the blueberry plants that are with the roses.

Just in case anyone has EVER wondered what it would be like to shower with roses, just take my word for it and just don't. Besides, I think the blueberry plants were embarrassed.

If you choose to ignore my advice, some you should not ignore - don't step backwards, JUST DON'T DO IT.

[JRinPA]

About done here too, I pulled the rest of the red beets, broke off the cabbage heads, got a few last side shoots of broccoli. I took three ripe but smallish cauliflower heads. The other 5 aren't formed yet, I doubled covered them with row cover but we'll see. Picked some frosty spinach that tastes fantastic and covered that row as well.
I still have in carrots, parsnips, summer turnips (lol) and brussels sprouts which are pretty tasty. Still need to plant garlic, hopefully next week.

It was a cold hour and a half in the dark...

kolibri spinach, picked frosty

06.JPG

red beets, detroit on left, cylindra on right

07.JPG

some split cabbage to salvage, plus Amazing cauliflower

08.JPG

intact Bravo cabbage

09.JPG

cylindra - some more than others but they are longer

10.JPG

detroits

11.JPG

Spinach is getting cooked, beets are getting stored in peat moss in the cellar, cabbage is going for more sauerkraut.

[bower]

That looks like a great haul for late fall, JR. Beautiful!
My friend brought me a bag of stuff from the farm last week. Huge crispy bok choys and some small cabbages... The wee cabbage has turned out to be one of the best things I've ever eaten. So sweet and crisp, it certainly rivals iceberg lettuce since it's also more tasty.

[Danny]

Yes, great haul there. Cabbage after it gets cold is so sweet.

[JRinPA]

Most of the cabbage *went* for a nearly filled 5 gallon bucket of sauerkraut. All but about 1-1/2 heads of good stuff. The split edges I didn't put in the kraut and were cooked the next day or so. Very good indeed.

Unfortunately the peat moss, besides being hard to find in fall, was $28 for a 3.8 cu ft at cheapest. I don't know how much it will come down in spring, either.

[Danny]

Well, it is safe to shower again, as the roses and blueberries got put outside to overwinter. With the spring like weather this week, it may not convince them it is time for dormancy to happen, highs almost to 70 and lows just ducking under freezing.

[rxkeith]

i took advantage of the snow melt, and went out in search of anything still out there to pick or pull.
i found a handful of small broccoli florets, enough to add to some salads. thats it for the season.
next was beets. i knew there was still some out there. there was a crust of snow to remove, but
i ended up getting about 5lbs out of the ground. thats it for the beets.
in the main garden, i found some kale still in good shape. leaves were mostly buried in snow, so i broke the stems off, and pulled
the leaves out. the pair of cotton tail rabbits, have been snacking on the greens. they left some fertilizer as a parting gift.
there are still greens left to get, but it was getting later in the day, and my hands were cold. only other thing out there
are some catawissa onions.
now i'm done.


keith

[Uncle_Feist]

Done?
I just cut my first napa cabbage of the season today.


Lettuce is still going strong as well.

[bower]

I have some Napa seedlings just getting their first true leaf!
I grew the Blues F1 last winter and when the last one bolted early summer I let it set seed. Didn't know if the seeds would be any good or not, but the sprouts look perfect and I suspect they'll all make good cabbages even if they're different in some way. They look uniform so far, but hey, both parents had to be Napas, right?

[karstopography]

I’ve got a few young napa type cabbages out there in my garden. The very heavy rain along with the wind we had for days semi-shredded many of the delicate leaves, but I think they may yet bounce back. Regular cabbage is far more able to handle strong wind and hard driving rain that we always get in the fall. Napa type cabbage is so relatively fragile especially when young.

I like napa or Chinese cabbage, but it has been harder to get to maturity here than most other brassicas with the delicate foliage and greater propensity to attract various pests like aphids and foliage eating caterpillars.

If I can’t make Chinese cabbage or napa cabbage work this winter I might just give up and focus on more sure bets.

[Shortcut Slim]

I had the worst season I've ever had,and I'm glad it's behind me. I had terrible tomato germination rates,and then many of the plants from the slow germinators didn't do well even with special care and feeding. The better plants set lots of fruit,but they never colored up at all. I think I got 2 dozen ripe tomatoes off 12 plants,and those were subpar. My daughter had the same dismal season.

Boy. I hope next season is better. I may have to find some Wes seeds again , as Sandhill isn't offering them this year. I think Totally Tomato offers them tho so not all is lost.