toms

[libby]

hello all,i'm new to your fantastic forum, and hope i've posted correctly, my toms are well ripe but some of them are yellowy/greeny around the tops. even though they are maybe over ripe, being very soft to the touch, iv'e had only one with b.e.r.,do you think my problem may be due to lack of water. as some in other pots seem fine, thanks.

[Chantal]

It sounds like greenback to me and I found this on Garden Organic's website.

"Greenback is a condition where the stalk end of the fruit fails to ripen, remaining green or yellow. It is usually caused by excessive heat in the greenhouse. Next year ensure that there is adequate ventilation in your greenhouse, shading and damping down to reduce temperatures. A shortage of both potassium and phosphorous may also be a contributory factor, but don’t be tempted to overfeed. Tomatoes need a regular feeding and watering regime. The Organic Gardening Catalogue stocks several varieties, such as ‘Alicante,’ ‘Matina’ and ‘Aromata’, that are resistant to greenback."

[Tigger]

You can cut off the green bits and roast the rest in olive oil (plus herbs/garlic/etc to taste) then puree down into a sauce, rather than waste them.

[Wellie]

Here Here Tigger !

Or, as I witnessed Friday last week whilst Gardening at one of my clients, another workman turned up to fix a water leak in an inaccessible wall, eating a tomato with Greenback, and he just bit into it saying "Mmm....Lovely". I said to him: "You grew that yourself, didn't you? I grow my own too..."

No more needed to be said. He knew what it was and so did I, and it made no difference.
You eat around it, or cut around it.......
Wellie