Topping your plants near the end of the season makes the difference between plenty of dry, green fruit and fewer but deliciously ripe fruit. About 30 days before the first frost, consider topping your plants to maximize ripening of existing fruit.
For Zone 6-7, the Farmer’s Almanac lists the first frost date for 2021 to be around mid-October. So, time to top tomatoes here would be around mid-September.
To maximize production of ripe tomatoes before the end of the season, we’re going to “have a talk” with the plants. We’re going to signal to them that they’re time is almost up to produce seed to secure their next generation and survival of the species.
We’re going to encourage them to throw all their resources into this effort, and we start by taking leaves off. Taking leaves off signals the plant to hasten reproduction by speeding up the ripening of fruit. Take 2-4 leaves off every week, starting from the bottom.
Removing new fruit, flowers and growing tips also causes the plant to focus on maturing and ripening the remaining fruit.
All this trimming will also open up the plants for better air circulation and minimize late blight, and you’ll get a head start on garden cleanup at the end of the season. It’s important to clean up tomato plants and dispose of them (not compost) so that any disease is removed and not left to persist in the soil to contaminate next year’s plants.