Cut blooms off Tomatoes? (Eastport: house, garden, moving)

[maine4.us]

In Eastport, our growing season is coming to an end in about 4-6 weeks. I have some great looking tomato plants that are really going to yield a great crop of tomatoes. They are the Early Girl variety. Okay, here is my question. I still have a lot of blooms that will never produce a usable tomato. Would I improve the size and yield of tomatoes that are already 1 1/2 - 2 inches if I simply removed the blooms from the plants. It seems to me that the plant would then use its energy to make the current tomatoes larger. I had green tomatoes the size of a marble in October last year, so I know the blooms this year won't make a decent tomato. So, do I cut the blooms off, or just let it go on blooming. I tried to find an answer everywhere, but I know our climate in Eastport is literally not discussed on any website. Lots of foggy mornings until 10-11am and then foggy evenings. The days are definitely shorter. I appreciate any help. This is the first time in years I have had success with tomatoes.

[Linda_d]

Feel free to remove the blossoms. I do it all the time after about Sept 1 here in southwestern NYS. Removing them will encourage the already formed tomatoes to start ripening, too.

[Electric Wizard]

Originally Posted by Linda_d

Feel free to remove the blossoms. I do it all the time after about Sept 1 here in southwestern NYS. Removing them will encourage the already formed tomatoes to start ripening, too.

I wish I had known that. It took forever it felt to get a ripened tomato.

[woxyroxme]

Congrats! My wife thinks she is going to be able to grow tomatoes once we get to Eastport, I told her she was nuts. My grandmother had a garden plot on Clark St. back in the olden days, did really well with potatoes, peas and turnips but never attempted tomatoes.

[Maine Writer]

You can shock the plant into ripening the fruits by severing its roots. Push a spade into the soil 12-15" away from the stem of the plant. Make a circle all the way around.

[Hemlock140]

Originally Posted by Maine Writer

You can shock the plant into ripening the fruits by severing its roots. Push a spade into the soil 12-15" away from the stem of the plant. Make a circle all the way around.

Yes, and then, with the first threat of frost, pull it up roots and all, and hang upside-down in the garage for the rest to ripen.

[Maine Writer]

Originally Posted by Hemlock140

Yes, and then, with the first threat of frost, pull it up roots and all, and hang upside-down in the garage for the rest to ripen.

That's a little soon for here. The second frost isn't usually close to the first. If you cover the plants overnight they'll be fine for a while longer.

[maine4.us]

I was going to upload a photo, but it's from my camera, and I don't have a website to it up to. Needless to say, I have about 75 4inch diameter tomatoes and they are ripening. The growing season will wind down soon here, so I want to get as many usable ones as possible. I didn't even have to hot house these. Early Girls will grow, and this wasn't a great growing season here in Eastport.