Grow & Tell is IPR’s biweekly gardening segment to guide you through the growing season.
Today, we’re talking tomatoes: ripe, red and bursting with flavor. Let’s walk through how to care for your tomato plants right now to make the most of these final few weeks before the season shifts.
Tip 1: Focus on fruit, not foliage
The weather has turned noticeably cooler. That can cause a bit of shock to your tomatoes. You might notice leaves curling, browning or flopping over — and that’s OK.
At this point in the season, your plant’s only job is to ripen the fruit it already has. Your job? Help it do that.
🔧 What to do:
- Chop off yellowing, curling or dead leaves
- Prune stems that are crowding the center of the plant — airflow is key
- Direct the energy to the tomatoes, not the greenery
Tip 2: Thin fruiting stems
Take a close look at the ends of your tomato stems. Chances are, you’ll see a mix of:
- Large, nearly ripe fruit
- Small green tomatoes
- Fuzzy little green balls that may never develop
- Blossoms that won’t have time to mature
✂️ Go ahead and chop off the ends of those stems, especially anything that looks underdeveloped or hasn’t flowered. That allows the plant to concentrate its energy on ripening the fruit that’s already well underway.
Tip 3: Beat the splits
It’s been wet lately, too — your ripe tomatoes might be splitting on the vine.
Harvest tip:
- Pick your tomatoes a day or two early, before they reach full “firetruck red” — look for that deep sunset hue, even with a little green
- Let them finish ripening indoors: A sunny window works great, or place them next to bananas or apples (which give off a ripening gas)
Tip 4: When in doubt, harvest the greens
🌡️ Frost forecast or rough-looking plant?
- Harvest all remaining tomatoes, even the green ones
- Use green tomatoes in recipes (fried green tomatoes, green salsas, etc.)
We’ve probably got three to four more weeks of tomato season, maybe a bit more if the frost holds off. So now is the time to start thinking like a plant in its final act.
🧹 Late-season checklist:
- Remove unnecessary leafy stems
- Prune back anything not producing fruit
- Watch the weather for the first signs of frost, and harvest green tomatoes if necessary
Tip 5: Savor the season
In the middle of all this pruning and prepping, don’t forget to celebrate what you’ve grown. If you’re plucking ripe cherry tomatoes straight from the vine and popping them into your mouth… you're doing it right.
This is the moment we’ve been working toward all season: You did it. You grew your own food.
We’ve still got more harvesting ahead, but soon it will be time to shift gears, say goodbye to the season and close up the garden.
For now, enjoy the fruits of your labor — literally.
