Final Tomato Freeze Warning!

After a long, hot summer, tomato plants seemed to have suffered across the Tri-cities and protecting the last of the die-hard fruits is a do or die. Now is the time, if you have any promising prospects to get them in and get them safe! There is a freeze warning in effect for our area, starting late Monday night and effective through Tuesday morning.

I struggled all summer just trying to get a ripe tomato, the heat really seemed to stunt their growth and their ripening. Any tomato that started to turn, I picked! I was so afraid I would lose them to the sweltering heat, so I plucked them and brought them to safety! Losing the last of the stragglers would seem criminal!

If you have any firm, slightly red, green (or even white) tomatoes, I recommend bringing them in the house tonight, wrapping them in newspaper and storing them at sixty five degrees. For best results remove the stem and wash them before wrapping them in newspaper.

Sadly they won't store for long after they ripen but if you want to have fresh tomato ANYTHING I recommend making a yummy tomato soup out of them and freezing that! It was definitely a rough year for tomato growers and it's always a sad day when you can't go out and pick a fresh tomato with dinner, but salvaging what you have is a bonus!