To Pick or Not to Pick - That is the Question?

[jflournoy]

In the past I have normally planted a half dozen varieties of hybrids and picked tomatoes when they were completely ripe on the vine and ready for eating. Did lose some to bugs and splitting/cracking occasionally, but not real often. All my reading has led me to believe that heirlooms can be a whole different ball of wax in that regard. This year I went whole hog and planted a ton of plants with the majority being a bunch of different heirloom varieties.

I find it hard to believe that you can pick something once it just starts blushing, let it ripen inside the house and it tastes no different than if you let it ripen completely on the vine before picking. But what I have been reading makes it sound very believable. So, my question is for those of you who have done a lot of both methods. What is your personal opinion, is there really no difference in taste and texture between a tomato ripened fully on the vine and one picked after "breaker" stage of ripening? Tomatoes are going to be getting ripe here very soon. I want to believe.

[TNTiger]

This is the first year I've been able to leave my tomatoes on the vine to ripen. While I love seeing the ripe tomatoes on the vine I've finally decided that the flavor isn't any different - at least not that I can tell!

Most years the squirrels got to tomatoes right after first blush so I started picking them before they would get to them. Perhaps this generation of squirrels has lost their taste for tomatoes . . . which is fine by me!

[jflournoy]

Here are some pics we took in the garden yesterday, just a few of the varieties we're growing this year. The numbers are the days to maturity, not how many we planted.

ozark_sunrise.jpg

rosella_purple.jpg

spudakee.jpg

black_early.jpg

kbx.jpg

orange_minsk.jpg

orange_strawberry.jpg

noire_charbonneuse.jpg

cowlicks_brandywine.jpg

[jflournoy]

And here is a pic of my son standing beside some very robust Orange Minsk and Orange Strawberry plants.

william2.jpg

[saltmarsh]

The difference in taste between vine ripened and picked when breaking color is very little if any.

The difference in taste between picked when breaking color and rotted fruit caused by an unexpected rain and split skin or bird pecked, varmit damaged, and worm eaten fruit is significant.

Use your own judgement. Claud

[clkeiper]

I don't notice any difference in flavor. What I notice is that I can eat it at the exact stage of ripe that I want it, though. Some I prefer with a touch of green still on the shoulders or striping down the side. I tend to pick more of them with less waste if they are picked before they are ripe. After they ripen they are FRAGILE. I plant most of my toms in cages made from concrete reenforcing wire and they are very unforgiving to a ripe tomato scraped across a wire trying to pull it out. I do a roadside stand and sometimes pick for a customer when they are here, but they also sit in the basket better on the green side as opposed to ripe. They are just too soft for that.

NOW ...about that boy... He is a handsome lad. Looks like he is turning into a nice young man.

[ginger2778]

BELIEVE!

[dustdevil]

You have some great looking tomatoes there!

[shelleybean]

I pick mine early and let them finish ripening on the counter. I have to or the critters will get them or they'll crack and split. As long as I don't rush things and really let them ripen all the way, they taste great. I do not notice a difference in flavor and they look a lot nicer because they're not split. Less waste, too.

[IronPete]

With most tomatoes its fairly easy to tell when that first blush is on. I am growing Indigo Apples for the first time and they have been half-blue (like your Ozark ones in the photo) since they were very small and that confuses me. They still aren't ripe on the vine a month later but still are half blue. Can anyone tell me how to tell when the 'Blues' are ripe?

You can grow a lot of good things in a garden. Kids grow better than anything in gardens. Glad to see your handsome young man up to his ears in the garden. They grow a lot better when exposed to sun and good soil than they do when exposed to the light from a video game or the 'earth' of a sofa! Good on you! Pete

[jflournoy]

Originally Posted by clkeiper

I don't notice any difference in flavor. What I notice is that I can eat it at the exact stage of ripe that I want it, though. Some I prefer with a touch of green still on the shoulders or striping down the side. I tend to pick more of them with less waste if they are picked before they are ripe. After they ripen they are FRAGILE. I plant most of my toms in cages made from concrete reenforcing wire and they are very unforgiving to a ripe tomato scraped across a wire trying to pull it out. I do a roadside stand and sometimes pick for a customer when they are here, but they also sit in the basket better on the green side as opposed to ripe. They are just too soft for that.

NOW ...about that boy... He is a handsome lad. Looks like he is turning into a nice young man.

Thanks. That is William, our oldest boy of 3, he just turned 12. This is really more his project than mine, I am providing guidance and free labor. He's been working hard on it, he spent several hours a few different days this week out pushing tomato limbs/shoots up through the support twine to try and keep the walkways between rows from becoming a complete jungle. He's planning to sell the lion's share of these tomatoes to 2 friends who have CSA's and aren't able to grow 100% of what they need, and to a local produce auction that we have been buying produce at for our own family for a few years.

[jflournoy]

Okay, ya'll have me convinced! I think we'll be headed out shortly to pick the first Early Wonder we saw blushing a bit yesterday.

[jflournoy]

Originally Posted by IronPete

With most tomatoes its fairly easy to tell when that first blush is on. I am growing Indigo Apples for the first time and they have been half-blue (like your Ozark ones in the photo) since they were very small and that confuses me. They still aren't ripe on the vine a month later but still are half blue. Can anyone tell me how to tell when the 'Blues' are ripe?

You can grow a lot of good things in a garden. Kids grow better than anything in gardens. Glad to see your handsome young man up to his ears in the garden. They grow a lot better when exposed to sun and good soil than they do when exposed to the light from a video game or the 'earth' of a sofa! Good on you! Pete

I definitely agree with you on that. Our children make their own entertainment with rocks, forts, tree climbing, wading in the creek and just having fun in the great outdoors. Oh, and a huge dose of reading in the evenings, one of their favorite things. They are very good helpers in the garden. William has been helping pick in our family garden for multiple years now (an excellent potato digger). It makes meal-time a little more meaningful when they know that they have contributed in a big way.

In addition to helping to earn some money, I am trying to help him learn this year with his tomato project what owning and running your own business is all about. So far so good. I anticipate once he holds some greenbacks in his hand from selling his first tomatoes that he will be well on his way.

[Fred Hempel]

Your tomatoes look great. No cracks!

[Dewayne mater]

First of all, consider yourself very luck that you have this option! Many of us have pests that eat tomatoes even before blushing begins, which is quite frustrating! Second, if you search the archives, there have detailed discussions about this. My recollection, vague as it is, is that blushing occurs when the tomato has cut off itself from further nutrients from the plant, indicating that so long as you pick after blush, the taste and texture should not change whether it ripens on the plant or on your counter. It will probably ripen faster on the plant because of higher temperatures though. Nice job!

Dewayne Mater