Thank you Tb, I will do that. I just hope I don't forget about them!

Tomatoes actually ripen in the dark, not the light as you would think. So yes, dark pantry works great. You can also speed the process by putting them in a closed paper shopping bag with a couple of ripe bananas. The bananas give off ethylene gas which also helps speed ripening. That trick also works with peaches, avocados, etc.

Actually, an apple works well for ripening. But I don't want all my green tomatoes to ripen at the same time, I prefer to eat them over a span of time.



A ripe apple giving off ethylene gas in a plastic bag is also the classic method to get a bromeliad to bloom (with the bromeliad in the plastic bag with the apple, of course).

Thanks Tiller Bee!
I lived on Maui for many years where Bromeliads, Orchids, Jade, Spider plants, Pothos and Pointsetias grew like weeds. I never knew that trick about Bromiliads.
You're never too old to learn something new....

Used every frost cloth and sheet we had to cover everything, took about an hour
Hard to cover some of the large Dahlias that I have growing, some of the ones outside are 4/5 feet tall and still loaded with flowers and buds.


First night that we started the wood stove, I do love the smell of fall!

I used all the plastic I had to cover stuff, but did not have enough for the flower beds. It was 33.1 degrees out about six AM. I'm afraid to look. But I didn't know those tricks about green tomatoes......I plan on picking a bunch today and trying that. Thanks Tiller Bee.

It's 65 in the house, though, so we did not need heat yet.

We had 36°F. Whew! I forgot to bring in my deck pots last night. Hopefully, the green beans will get over the shock and keep on going strong for another week or two.

The low here near KZ was 32.3 at 6:30.

Light frost on the deck, but puddles and water bowls were completely liquid at 8300 ft, Brook Forest area

No Freeze for me!! But temperature dropped to 35 and I had my first substantial frost of the season.

I only covered the corn, squashes and cukes. Everything looks great except for some annuals (they were looking a bit shabby anyway) and the potatoes don't look super happy this morning either.

I hope it warms up again this next week as I have several ears of corn that are sooooooo close to being ready. But the majority of this second harvest of corn is probably not going to make it to maturity.

A little warmer this morning.....37.8 degrees at 6am. And no frost.

Low of 28 degrees at Lake George just before 7 AM. Definitely a chill in the air.