The constant gardener
There for the picking
As tomatoes ripen, reduce watering and remove the lower leaves to let more sun on the fruit. The season will be nearly over by March so removing many of the leaves will not hurt the fruit. While leaving tomatoes to ripen on the plant makes them tastier and sweeter, green tomatoes will ripen inside on a sunny window sill or in a paper bag with other fruit, such as apples that give off ethylene gas, a ripening agent. Or cook them green, as in fried green tomatoes, which are first coated in a cornmeal-based batter.
