Some people think that it is unrealistic to keep such a perishable vegetable in excellent condition. But it is enough to remember that you can buy ripe, strong tomatoes on the market even in winter in order to understand that this is possible.
The main thing is to approach the choice of vegetables and find the best place to store them.
What kind of tomatoes can be stored
Picking tomatoes begin in late July and continue until frost. As soon as the first drop in temperature is below zero, all tomatoes, regardless of the degree of ripeness, are removed. Because even slightly frozen tomatoes cannot be stored, as they begin to turn black in places of contact with frosty air. But even if, at first glance, the tomatoes were not injured, they will quickly deteriorate in storage.
Best kept late and late varieties of tomatoes: De Barao, San Marzano, Kumato, Zhanina, Giraffe, Masterpiece-1.
How to prepare tomatoes for storage
- Tomatoes are sorted according to the degree of ripeness and size of the fruit, because red and green tomatoes are stored at different temperatures. And large tomatoes ripen faster during harvest than small ones.
- Tomatoes must be strong, without dents, damaged by disease. After all, even a small spot of phytophtoras on one fruit can destroy the rest of the tomatoes lying in the same box.
- It is necessary, if possible, to leave the stalks, because such tomatoes are stored much better.
- Tomatoes must be completely dry.
- Before folding tomatoes into boxes, they are sometimes carefully rubbed with alcohol or vodka and dried well. Using such a simple manipulation, microbes are destroyed on the surface of the tomatoes, which also prolongs the storage time.
- Tomatoes are alternately dipped for a few seconds in a 0, 4 percent aqueous solution of gelatin, and then dried. A thin gelatinous film will not allow tomatoes to deteriorate during lying.
- Tomatoes are well stored if they are treated with a 0.3% solution of boric acid or a 0% 1% aqueous solution of potassium permanganate.
How to store tomatoes in the cellar or basement
The cellar for these vegetables must be clean, well ventilated.
It is important to establish the optimum humidity in the room - 80-90%. If the storage is damp, the tomatoes grow moldy, and because of the dry air, they gradually begin to shrink, dry out and do not ripen.
The temperature in the cellar should be no higher than 12 ° heat.
How to store red tomatoes
- Tomatoes are laid with stems upward into shallow boxes in 2-3 rows. Each row is shifted by chaff or sawdust.
- To prevent tomatoes from touching each other, they are wrapped in soft paper.
- The boxes are covered with a thin film. But care must be taken that fresh air is not stopped to the tomatoes.
Store red tomatoes at a temperature of + 1 ... + 2 °. Shelf life - 1-2 months.
How to store brown tomatoes
- Tomatoes are laid up with petioles up into clean boxes of 8-12 kg each.
- So that they do not touch each other, they are poured with sawdust or wrapped in thin paper.
- Close the lid and store at a temperature of + 4 ... + 6 °.
How to store dairy and green tomatoes
The best stored - up to three months - it is these tomatoes, because even in the plucked fruits the ripening process continues.
Method 1
Green tomatoes are stored on racks in complete darkness. In November, the fruit is wrapped in soft wrapping paper and placed in boxes covered with sawdust, sacking or chaff. Boxes cleaned in a room with low temperature. Stored until January. Method 2
Tomatoes are put in boxes, sprinkling each layer of chaff or sawdust. If there is no chaff or sawdust, then they can be replaced with onion peel.
Store at a temperature of -2 to + 2 °.
Ripening green tomatoes indoors
To make green tomatoes quickly turn red, they are transferred to a warm room, where they ripen in three days.
If green tomatoes are kept in the dark these days, the redness will be slower, but the color will be more even than those that are in the light. But the latter will ripen faster.
Ripening green tomatoes in the garden
When there is no room for ripening tomatoes in the room, they can be left to ripen in the garden.
- For this, props are removed, and the bushes themselves are laid on spreading straw.
- Top the tomatoes covered with a film, making a kind of greenhouse.
- Watered gently so as not to wet the fruit.
- They harvest as they mature.
How to store tomatoes in an apartment
Trying to keep the tomatoes in the apartment, you need to know that at room temperature red tomatoes can lie no more than four days, pink - five days, brown - a week, and green - about ten days. And then they will start to deteriorate.
But if the tomatoes are in the stage of milky ripeness, then they can be decomposed in a cool pantry or under the bed. Without access to light, they will be stored for a rather long time. However, to taste they will be inferior to tomatoes, which are stored in the cellar.
Therefore, if there is no cellar, and the tomatoes need to be stored as long as possible, then they need to be put in the refrigerator or taken out on the glazed balcony.
How to store tomatoes in the refrigerator
Tomatoes are stored in the vegetable compartment. Strong tomatoes with no signs of spoilage are suitable for storage.
They are placed in a box, laying in one row tails up. Then lay a soft paper and put the second row. For better storage, each fruit can be wrapped in soft paper. Then the tomatoes will not touch each other. And if one fruit starts to deteriorate, it will not affect the quality of the other tomatoes.
But you will have to forget about plastic bags, as tomatoes without fresh air disappear quickly into them.
How to store tomatoes on the balcony
If the balcony is glazed and the temperature on it is kept within + 5 ... + 12 °, then the tomatoes are placed in boxes laid with sacking or paper. Each tomato layer is separated from each other by the same gasket material. The boxes are stacked and covered with a cloth that does not allow light in, but does not interfere with the flow of fresh air.
Hostess Tips
- For green tomatoes to ripen faster, you need to take a few pieces, put them in a paper bag and put an apple there. The ethylene gas released by this fruit will contribute to the rapid ripening of tomatoes. The same effect has a ripe tomato.
- Tomatoes in the store are periodically picked. Reddened tomatoes are transferred to a cooler place or used for food, and those who start to spoil are removed. If necessary, change sawdust and litter.
