Should tomatoes ripen on the vine or on the plant?

Posted on by Vaseline

Helen Vanella, Greene County Master Gardeners
| Specially for the News-Leader

Q: I planted elephant ear bulbs this spring, but they haven’t done much yet. Why aren’t they growing as tall as the others I see?

First of all, there are several varieties of elephant ears, the height ranges from 1 to 8 feet tall and the spread is 1 to 6 feet wide. If the variety you have is the standard type and not a dwarf variety, there are a few things that can help your plants reach their potential.

Elephant ears prefer moist soil with plenty of organic matter (chopped leaves, composted manure, etc.) worked into the soil. These plants can even grow on the edges of ponds. It is also a good idea to weed around them to reduce competition for water and nutrients. It is also good to put mulch around them for the same reason.

Most varieties prefer filtered sun or shade, although they can tolerate sun if they have shade during the hottest part of the day. The darker varieties do well in full sun. These can grow well in containers or in the ground, and potted plants make excellent patio plants. A sheltered location to protect the large leaves from wind damage is also good.

Q: My tomatoes seem to be getting insect damage before they ripen. Is it acceptable to pick them while they are still green so that they continue to ripen from the inside out before the insects can get to them, and still have the good, full flavor of a vine-ripened tomato? I have also noticed that my tomatoes don’t seem to be ripening as quickly as I would expect.

Picking early is actually a good idea to prevent insect damage, sunburn, and other tomato problems. The fruits can be picked as soon as they show signs of color at the blossom end, allowing them to ripen inside within a few days. Although it is commonly believed that picking early results in less flavorful tomatoes and that they need to ripen on the vine to be at their best, tomatoes picked early this way actually taste better.

Most of the blame for the slow ripening of tomatoes can be directly attributed to the warm weather we have been having. The ideal temperatures for ripening tomatoes are between 68 and 77 degrees F. When temperatures are above 85 degrees F, the fruits cannot produce lycopene and carotene, the pigments that give tomatoes their color. Other factors can be too much nitrogen or too many fruits on one plant. It is advisable to cut back on fertilizer once the plant has developed blossoms. As for the fruits, removing about a quarter of the fruits is an option. Our biggest problem right now is the warm weather, only time will solve that.

Q: My lavender plants are not doing well. I water them well every morning and they get sun in the afternoon. What could be the problem?

Lavender is a Mediterranean plant that prefers full sun (6 or more hours per day) and dry, sandy soil. Watering every day is probably too much in this case.

Readers can ask questions or get more information by calling 417-874-2963 and speaking with one of the trained volunteers on the Master Gardener Hotline at the University of Missouri Extension Center in Greene County, located in the Botanical Center, 2400 S. Scenic Ave., Springfield, MO 65807.

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