When to pick tomatoes so they ripen faster at home. Signs of ripening of greenhouse tomatoes and harvesting rules

Our capricious but beloved vegetables are growing. But, alas, not everyone knows when to pick tomatoes in a greenhouse and how to do it correctly.

You may ask, why know? I picked ripe tomatoes from the bush and it was done.

We do not forget that growing in a greenhouse is different from open ground. While in the garden beds we remove everything by the end of August, in the greenhouse the process is extended. There is more harvest, and the duration of ripening is delayed. Why, in fact, are we installing a greenhouse?

When to pick tomatoes in a greenhouse

There is no specific deadline at all. When to pick tomatoes depends on:

your region of residence, in the Moscow region it will be later than outside the Urals
depending on the variety grown, some large-fruited and late-ripening tomatoes hang until the end of September
depending on the time of planting, and on the quality of care, if normal greenhouse temperature and humidity were maintained, fertilizing was applied, then the tomatoes will begin to bear fruit earlier and longer
from the greenhouse, its covering, of course, in the film greenhouse it will be colder at night and tomatoes will have to be harvested earlier

Greenhouse tomatoes are always harvested a little earlier, not fully ripe, to allow the fruits higher on the cluster to ripen faster.

There are varieties that make it difficult to pick unripe tomatoes; in this case, there will be nothing wrong if they hang on the branches until they are fully ripe.

There is one more time when you need to leave tomatoes in the greenhouse to ripen completely on the bush, this is collecting seeds. Be sure to collect seeds from the variety you like only from fully ripened tomatoes that have been ripening and not ripening in boxes.

Tomatoes picked before they are ripe are easier to transport if they grow in the country, this is a definite advantage.

Do I need to collect green tomatoes in a greenhouse?

Tomatoes that are completely green are harvested in extreme cases:

When the temperature at night drops below +8 degrees.

When disease epidemics begin due to weather conditions or poor care.

In such cases, if all the fruits on the uppermost clusters have already grown, then all of them are removed without exception.

There is also nothing wrong if the tomatoes are picked green. Sometimes we have to remove them even when they are not at milk maturity; in Siberia, night cold snaps sometimes begin very early.

If you notice signs of late blight on the lower tomatoes, then it is better to immediately start picking the tomatoes, otherwise, instead of ripe, they will begin to turn black and spoil. In order for such tomatoes to ripen well in boxes, you must first sort them out and remove all the fruits with fungal spots. Then immerse each tomato in hot water for a few seconds, and then in cold water, wipe dry and set aside for ripening. Temperature hot water should be 60 degrees.

How to properly harvest tomatoes in a greenhouse

We know that tomatoes do not ripen all at once, but gradually, starting with the lower fruits. They need to be collected just as gradually, first removing the largest and ripest ones, then the rest as they ripen.

In order for the tomatoes to feel good during ripening, in order to ultimately get firm and elastic tomatoes, they need to be removed along with the sepals, then they will not lose moisture.

How to harvest tomatoes for ripening

When the first tomatoes are collected, they need to be placed in some containers, boxes, boxes, preferably in one or two layers, so that it is more convenient to control the ripening process.

Some, if there are a lot of fruits, simply pour them in a separate room directly onto a rag spread on the floor and thus bring the tomatoes “to condition”, gradually selecting the ripe ones for food or canning.

The process of ripening speed can be adjusted; if the room is cool, up to +18 degrees, then the tomatoes will ripen from ten days to two weeks. If you need to get ripe tomatoes faster, then raise the temperature or place them in a warm place, +26, and they will ripen in three to four days.

Advice from grandmothers: To make tomatoes ripen faster, you need to put a ripe red tomato or red apple next to it in the box.

When ripening, we must not forget to inspect the fruits, remove spoiled ones and select ripe ones in a timely manner. Sometimes, due to an oversight, a long-ripened tomato from the bottom row begins to deteriorate and infects nearby tomatoes.

When to pick tomatoes in a greenhouse video

Along with potatoes and cucumbers, tomatoes are one of the most popular vegetable crops in the country. Ease of care, high taste and nutritional qualities have led to the widespread use of this product. However, there is one significant nuance in its cultivation that affects its presentation. We are talking about the time of harvest. When to pick tomatoes open ground, and what are the stages of maturity of this vegetable, read on.

Tomato is classified as perennial plants a large family of nightshades, numbering about 2000 species. The cultivation of the vegetable began in the Black Sea and Volga regions and gradually covered most geographic zones of Russia, including the north.

There are 5 stages of tomato ripening:

early ripening (green, white);
early (dairy);
mid-season (brown, blanzhevye);
medium late (pink);
late (red).

When determining the ripeness of a tomato, it is important not to confuse green fruits that are ready to eat and unripe green vegetables that are in the process of ripening. The former are suitable for consumption and transportation over long distances. The latter need to ripen. However, even after ripening, their taste will not meet the expectations of gardeners. A vegetable picked too early will never be juicy.

Table 1. Characteristics of tomatoes depending on the stages of ripeness

Stage	Description
Early ripening	The average plant height is 50 cm. The fruits are predominantly small, flat-round, weighing up to 150 g. They are grown both in open ground and in greenhouses. Purpose - salad.
Early	Medium-sized, firm-textured vegetables. Used for preservation.
Mid-season	Soft juicy fruits that do not spoil during transportation. The area around the stalk is colored pink color. The flesh is golden or yellow. Used for culinary purposes.
Mid-late	The height of the stem reaches 1.5 m. Large red fruits have a rich taste. Not suitable for long distance transportation.
Late	Tall varieties growing up to 2 m in height. Up to 40 ovaries are formed in one brush. Productivity reaches 12 kg per bush.

Fruiting period

When planting vegetable crops that bear fruit several times during one season, you should familiarize yourself with the timing of harvesting the first and last harvest. This will prevent the removal of unripe or overripe fruits.

Ripening period:

early ripening - from 60 to 70 days;
early - from 75 to 90;
mid-season - from 85 to 105;
mid-late - from 105 to 120;
late - from 130 to 160 days.

More precise dates depend on the tomato variety, climatic conditions and care characteristics.

Optimal time for harvesting

Most gardeners prefer to harvest fruits in early August. This desire is dictated by the reluctance to leave vegetables exposed to cold dew, which is destructive to many crops. However, not every variety faces such a danger. By this period, it is recommended to remove only fully ripe vegetables.

With a competent approach, up to 2 kg of early-ripening varieties, 3 kg of mid-ripening and 6 kg of late ripening varieties are harvested from each bush.

For better ripening of tomatoes, it is recommended to carry out the following procedure on the 10th of August. Finely chop the first green or reddened pepper pods, pour boiling water and leave for 24 hours. Then dilute it in 5 liters of water and pour the resulting solution over the beds.

Special purpose

When harvesting, you should be aware of the further use of vegetables.

Areas of use:

Cooking food. For these purposes, take tomatoes that have reached the red stage (this does not apply to yellow varieties). The most ripe, deep red tomatoes are good as the main ingredient for tomato juice and ketchup.
Canning. Brown vegetables are suitable. They are also suitable for pickling and salting.
Long-term storage. Green fruits are used at the initial stage of ripeness.

Regardless of technical and physiological ripeness, the same variety can be harvested different stages maturation.

Need for pruning

The tomato is considered a capricious heat-loving vegetable. It bears fruit poorly in low light conditions.

In a dense planting pattern, the leaves block access to the sun. This significantly inhibits the development of vegetables and promotes rapid fading bush. Besides a large number of greenery will draw all the energy from the crop for its own nutrition, and not for supporting the growth of fruits.

General rules for cutting foliage:

Leaves touching the ground are cut off first. This allows light to reach the base of the stem.
Then the first row of the flower brush is released, which prevents the development of pathologies.
Peripheral foliage is also removed.
Leaves that shade other external organs of the plant are thinned out.
Only the strongest stepson is left on the bush. This will concentrate all useful elements in one place. As a rule, it is located under the first inflorescence.
When tying vegetables, cut out all the foliage below the level of the fruit.
At the final stage, the tops are cut off, leaving only a small ligature.
The frequency of pruning is 3 times a week.

Even weekly cleaning of bushes from excess greenery will significantly increase the yield of the beds.

Bringing tomatoes to maturity

Tomato ripening is effective both in sunlight and in dim lighting. Although most gardeners believe that vegetables ripen faster in the light.

Storage conditions	Characteristic
Layout	Fruits are sorted by size and stage of ripeness. Vegetables are laid out in dry, clean boxes in 2 layers no more than 20 cm high. For long-term ripening, they are placed in 1 layer. Every day the fruits are sorted and spoiled ones are thrown away. For better ripening, lay them out with the stalks facing up. If you put several ripe ones in each box of unripe fruits, they will ripen within 1 week. To speed up the process, tomatoes that are starting to ripen are removed from the boxes every day. They will release ethylene, which affects the ripening of other vegetables. To get the most juicy product possible, before frost, tomato bushes are pulled out by the roots and hung on a rope. The outflow of liquid and useful elements from the stem to the fruit makes the vegetables fresher.
Temperature	The optimal temperature regime is from 20 to 24 o C. At 30 o C, vegetables ripen faster, but lose their elasticity. To speed up the process, the temperature is lowered to 18°C, to slow it down - to 10°C. The colder the room, the more susceptible the fruits are to rotting.
Ventilation	The premises provide access clean air at the rate of 5 liters of oxygen per 1 kg of tomatoes and arrange daily ventilation.
Lighting	When exposed to light, tomatoes acquire a brighter color. If it is necessary to speed up the process, the fruits are irradiated every day with a blue lamp for 30 minutes.
Humidity	Optimum humidity 80%. Exceeding this indicator leads to spoilage of the tomato. Low air humidity negatively affects the peel and taste.

Due to the fact that milk and blanc tomatoes ripen slowly, their consumption period is fresh increases by 2 months.

The main factors influencing the speed of ripening are temperature and humidity in the room. By adjusting these indicators, you can slow down or speed up the ripening process.

Storing tomatoes

Unlike most vegetable crops, tomatoes have a short shelf life. This creates difficulties for gardeners when resolving issues related to their storage.

Small-fruited varieties with thick skins remain fresh for a long time.

Subject to temperature regime good results can be achieved regardless of the variety:

ripe - from 1 to 2°C;
blanzhevy - from 4 to 6°C;
green ripe - from 10 to 12°C.

Tomatoes at the milk stage of ripeness, harvested in late autumn, are stored for an especially long time.

The room and trays are disinfected.
Whole, unripe fruits are selected.
Each vegetable is wrapped in soft paper.
Boxes with tomatoes are sprinkled with moss, birch sawdust or peat chips.
Tomatoes that are at the milk stage of ripeness are placed in boxes, the bottom of which is covered with heat-insulating material. Each layer is alternated with polyurethane foam balls, which retain heat well.
When closing, check that the lid of the box does not damage the tomatoes.
Tomatoes are stored in a cool, well-ventilated area away from sunlight.
Vegetables are regularly sorted and ripened fruits are removed.
Indoor air humidity is maintained within 85%.

Some gardeners store frozen tomatoes by placing them in boxes under the snow.

After prolonged storage, tomatoes become sensitive to the effects of pathogenic microorganisms. Harmful bacteria primarily infect the vegetable at the attachment point of the stalk. To prevent rotting, you should follow the rules for cutting fruits and storing the crop, as well as adhere to harvest dates.

Video - When to pick tomatoes

Tomatoes are grown a significant part gardeners in Russia. Most often, polycarbonate-based greenhouses are used for this purpose, as well as those with a glass or glass coating. polyethylene film. In the Moscow region it is possible to get a good harvest of high-quality tomatoes in open ground, but only in the open ground can you harvest fully ripened tomatoes.

Ways to accelerate maturation

The ripening of tomato fruits in a polycarbonate greenhouse can be completely accelerated available means. It is enough to correctly perform a few simple manipulations and you will be able to harvest ripe fruits without ripening green tomatoes at home. In order to speed up the ripening time, you need to perform the following steps.

Spraying with certain means accelerates the ripening of fruits. For this purpose, you can use a special iodine solution, for the preparation of which forty drops of ordinary pharmaceutical iodine should be dissolved in a bucket of water. At this stage, fertilizing and irrigation should be suspended.
Reversing the branches allows you to harvest tomatoes much earlier low growing plants towards the sun, followed by securing them with spacers and slingshots.

How to grow tomatoes in a polycarbonate greenhouse (video)

The presence of large brown fruits on the branches inhibits the ripening of other tomatoes and it is advisable to harvest them at the stage of incomplete ripeness.
The fruits ripen much faster if the tops of the plants are pinched. It should be taken into account that in order to ensure the growth of fruits, it would be correct to leave a couple of leaves above the inflorescences on which fruits have already set.
The lower leaves must be removed up to the trusses, where the tomatoes are already ripening.
Low and medium-growing bushes should have a maximum of four or five tassels, and the remaining tassels should be broken off properly. After such manipulations, the harvest is formed faster, which is due to the expenditure of plant energy on ripening the fruits.
In a polycarbonate greenhouse, quite high efficiency is shown by limiting the flow of moisture from the roots. In order to nutrients did not spend on the growth of green mass, at a height of ten centimeters in the stems, a through cut should be made with a knife, the length of which is about five centimeters. A wooden sliver needs to be inserted into the cut. To speed up the collection of ripe fruits, it is also possible to tighten the stem at a height of five centimeters with thin copper wire.

Ripening time

How long it takes from germination to harvest and how long the plant grows depends on the tomato variety. In addition, ripening depends on how many ovaries the plant has formed, as well as on innate “genetic factors”, factors environment and growing methods. The rate of ripening of greenhouse tomatoes varies greatly and depending on how much time is required for this process, all varieties of this vegetable crop can be grouped into subgroups.

Hybrid tomatoes. They are designated F1. They are characterized by a high ripening rate and give maximum early harvest. The most popular hybrids, most of which grow well in a greenhouse, are represented by the varieties “Typhoon”, “Verlioka”, “Semko” and “Druzhok”.

Greenhouse varieties. The collection of varietal tomatoes in the greenhouse occurs a little later. The earliest harvesting involves the use of early-ripening and ultra-early-ripening varieties. The most successful ones include “Hurricane”, “Yantarny”, “Samara”, “Junior” and “Joy of Summer”.

The earliest harvest of ripened fruits is typical for determinate tomato varieties, while indeterminate varieties form ripe fruits a little later. Hybrid tomatoes ripen slightly earlier than varietal representatives. You can pick ripe fruits almost a month earlier.

Harvest time

Very important for getting quality harvest has regular fruit collection. Fruits must be picked at the stage of technological maturity of tomatoes, which is divided into the following stages:

partial ripening of fruits;
full ripeness of the fruit.

The fruits, pink when cut, are already quite suitable for eating. Selective harvesting at partial maturity can significantly increase overall volume harvest. Overripe tomatoes on the bushes lose taste qualities and reduce overall yield. Poured fruits Green colour It is allowed to leave on tomato bushes until the first days of September.

Storage rules

Harvested tomato fruits are very short-lived, but you can extend their shelf life by a month or more. For this purpose, fruits are harvested when they reach technical maturity. During this period, tomato seeds are characterized by fully formed, but green pulp. The best option is harvesting at the stage of milky or brown maturity.

Harvesting tomatoes in a greenhouse (video)

The collected fruits must be stored after ripening. It is this process that allows you to preserve tomatoes for as long as possible, and the gardener will be able to boast of having independently grown, juicy home-grown tomatoes on the New Year’s table.

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The main thing in caring for tomatoes is to speed up the ripening of the set fruits and protect them from rotting. To do this, you need to continue to remove newly appearing stepsons, excess leaves, be sure to pinch the tops of all fruit-bearing shoots, and remove flower clusters on which the fruits no longer have time to form. U low-growing varieties Tomato bunches with fruits should be turned towards the sun. It is also a good idea from August 11, in addition to all the basic fertilizing, to additionally feed the tomatoes: dilute 1 tablespoon of urea, superphosphate and potassium sulfate in 10 liters of water, using 0.5 liters of solution per plant.

It is most advisable to remove all formed tomato fruits from the bushes when brown and lay them for ripening. This simple technique speeds up the filling of the remaining green fruits on the bush. Before storing for ripening, in order to protect the fruits from blackening, they must be warmed up. How do they do it? In a bucket of hot water with a temperature of 60 degrees. Dip approximately 1 kg of tomatoes for 2 minutes, then wipe them with a soft cloth, dry them in the sun and only then put them in for ripening.

To speed up the ripening process, it is carried out indoors at a temperature of 20-25 degrees. The fruits are placed in small boxes in 2-3 layers, no more, removing the pedicels from them. Add some red tomatoes to the boxes. By releasing ethylene gas, they accelerate the ripening process of their green “brothers”.

In the light, ripening tomatoes acquire a more intense color than in the dark.

The fruits remain green for 2.5 months or more if selected absolutely healthy tomatoes, after warming up, place them in boxes with the stalks up in 2-3 layers. Each layer must be sprinkled with dry peat or sawdust; you can wrap each fruit in paper. They should be stored at a temperature of 8-10 degrees.

It is necessary to remove all the fruits from the bushes until the night temperature drops below 8 degrees. Harvested at temperatures below 4 degrees. Tomatoes will rot during storage.

In the Moscow region, tomatoes in a greenhouse must be removed for ripening, especially if the summer is rainy. They also take into account the threat of disease, night temperatures, region, and variety. In northern latitudes, tomatoes are picked from the bush at the end of September, in middle lane and in the south, the greenhouse harvest is harvested in August. These are approximate dates. At the same time, it is important to observe the culture.

Why do they do it and is it necessary at all?

Tomatoes are very afraid of rot. Because of this, gardeners are forced to take extra care of them during the growth period: eliminate stepchildren, remove wilted leaves. While you are doing all this and you don’t notice how autumn is in the yard, it’s time to harvest. This also has its difficulties.

If you don't do this on time, you may lose most harvest. Tomato is a fastidious, delicate plant that does not tolerate mistakes in care. Therefore, it will easily rot right on the branch, without even turning red.

There is only one way out: collect unripe tomatoes.

Green tomatoes are not only possible to collect, but also necessary. Especially if the region does not have a comfortable climate in summer. The further north you go, the more advisable it is to harvest just such tomatoes. They will definitely ripen, but not in a greenhouse, but at home, in optimal conditions.

Green tomatoes are harvested in only two cases:

at low temperatures at night. If it drops below 8ºC, then this is a sure sign that it is time;
if in a greenhouse due to adverse weather conditions or improper care illnesses began. In this case, there will be only one way out - quickly collect what has grown and get rid of the remains.

Tomato maturity phases

Collection big harvest is directly related to what stage of ripening the tomatoes are in the greenhouse.

Agricultural scientists have established three degrees of maturity of tomatoes:

Green or unripe. These are the fruits that are fully formed and have normal size. Here, the stage of milky ripeness is especially distinguished - the state when tomatoes are already able to ripen without a bush.
Brown. At this stage, the surface around the stalk becomes pink or brown, depending on the variety. And if you cut a tomato, it will also be pinkish inside. At this stage, the fruits can already be eaten and used for homemade preparations. In order to ripen, such tomatoes only need a couple of days and the proper conditions for this.
Ripe fruits. You can see them right away - they are red, ripe and look the way tomatoes should look. They are soft, heavy (heavier than water), and their seeds have already reached maturity and can be used for growing seedlings.

If tomatoes are at this stage, they cannot be transported; they will quickly deteriorate. But the purees, juice and paste they make are excellent. As well as fresh salads.

When should tomatoes be picked for ripening?

In gardening magazines, information on this matter differs. An ordinary summer resident quickly gets confused, trying to systematize the knowledge that he took from there.

You can independently determine whether it is time to harvest the fruits. You just need to watch the tomatoes and the weather a little.

Typically, harvesting begins differently in regions, and its timing depends on the variety. For example, in the middle zone and Moscow region, tomatoes begin to be harvested in July and August. Some varieties begin to ripen as early as the end of June.

Here are a few simple rules which will help you decide when it is best to harvest tomatoes in greenhouses:

If the temperature drops below 10ºC at night, then it is time to remove the remaining fruit from the branches; they will ripen later. In autumn, watch the temperature difference more carefully, it can be insidious.
If late blight begins to spread in the neighborhood. This fungus is persistent, spreads quickly among plants and leads to crop destruction. Here it is important to quickly collect everything, and cut out the remaining bushes and burn them away from the summer cottage.
If the tomatoes are still green, but have already formed and reached milky ripeness, then they can be harvested. This is especially true for those who live far from the site and cannot monitor the condition of tomatoes in greenhouses every day.

Remember that it is always better to be safe than to miss the right moment and be left with frozen or rotten tomatoes. Therefore, shoot green tomatoes It is possible already when they have reached the stage of milk maturity.

How to properly lay out tomatoes for ripening

All fruits intended for ripening have been collected. Now you need to position them correctly, and most importantly, provide the conditions so that they turn red.

What does that require:

a warm room, with an inside temperature of at least 20ºC, preferably 25ºC;
humidity not less than 80%;
the ability to ventilate the room so that the air does not stagnate, but circulates and helps the fruits “breathe.” Even after being torn away from the bush, they are capable of this;
it is desirable to have windows so that sunlight could speed up the process;
some wooden boxes to put the collected tomatoes there.

The stalks are removed before laying out in boxes. After this, the fruits are distributed among the boxes in one layer so that there is no heap. This way they can ripen faster.

If you immediately provide them with sunlight and warmth, then ripening will be short-lived, only two weeks. After this, the tomatoes are stored for another couple of months in a usable condition.

Sometimes, during the ripening process in boxes, tomatoes may turn black. To avoid this, a useful operation can be performed.

Take 1 kg of tomato and place it in a container with water heated to 60 degrees. Let it stand for two minutes, take it out and wipe it dry. Then we dry it in the sun for a while until we are sure that there is no moisture left.

Despite all the measures, it is necessary to periodically sort through the tomatoes in the boxes. There may be diseased or rotting fruits. They should be disposed of first, to prevent the infection from spreading further.

There are times when doubts arise during harvesting. Shoot now or wait? Should I leave it to ripen on the branches or send it to a warm room for this?

Be guided by the conditions in which you live. If, with the arrival of autumn, the weather deteriorates catastrophically and the nights become cold, take pictures. Even green ones. This way you will protect tomatoes from late blight and preserve the harvest.