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Draping the garden against the cold |
First Published Jan 11, 2013
Update: This is still relevant today, as for many, many generations, gardeners have gathered green tomatoes and stashed them safely against the harsh elements of winter.
Thanks for reading. October 2025In Phoenix, Arizona, the growing season is nearly year
round; people plant tomatoes in September and October because we have such mild
winters. Sometimes, though, even the valley of the sun experiences near
freezing temperatures and we have to cover up the plants, from ornamentals to
small shrubs to the vegetable garden out back.
Our back garden looks a bit like a refugee camp for wandering veggies. Drive through the neighborhood and you see old sheets and blankets draped over hedges. But if it saves the plants, then drape we shall.
Ripening tomatoes in a box |
This year, though, it's cold. So I've taken the large green tomatoes off the plants and I'm going to try and ripen them in the house.
There's no dearth of suggested methods for ripening tomatoes off the vine. I can place them in an open paper bag with a banana. The ethylene gas from the banana hastens ripening.
Ripening tomatoes in a bowl |
Others say to put the green tomatoes on a window sill, and let the sun do its job.
I don't have any bananas at the moment, nor do I have a crate. But I do have a light bulb box and a bowl. So I'll put a few tomatoes in the box and set then out of the light, and some in a bowl in indirect sunlight.
Then we'll see what happens next.
The strawberry plant is still alive |
But cold weather notwithstanding, it's time to get ready for spring. I'm going to start seeds for greens and tomatoes and summer squash, but that's all for another post.
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