I should have mentioned that the remaining peas are far more than I could possibly need for seed...by a couple of orders of magnitude, probably. I live in the city, and have a small garden, so it takes me years to make it through a seed packet (and when stored in the fridge, the seeds last just fine). So...finding a way to eat these is what I'm looking for. Do I *need* to let them dry on the vines? If so, how dry is dry? If they're not quite dry enough, can I pull up the vines and hang them somewhere? I was hoping to plant another round of peas in the same spot for a Fall crop, and someone I know from my area learned from experimentation that "in the ground no later than July 25th" was the magic timing.

Ripening isn't the same as growing, Sujiwan. My vegetable garden has already experienced a killing frost and many sunny days with chilly overnight temperatures. The tomatoes are entirely "burned" down but I was out there yesterday and under the dead foliage was a couple of ripe and tasty cherry tomatoes. Now, you aren't wanting to wait quite that late for harvest, are you?? Here are what the horticulturalists say about base mean temperatures for the growing of some veggies: 40°F - lettuce, asparagus, 45°F - potatoes, 50°F - sweet corn, tomatoes. These are average daily temperatures between those highs and lows you noted. The weather service has the info for you on recent days in their "Preliminary Climatology Data" pages. My guess is that you still have ripening and even growing temperatures for your vegetables. Just be ready to make that harvest run if frost is in your forecast. Steve Here is a link that might be useful: Growing degree days

Pineapples are non-climacteric fruit. This means they do little to no ripening after being picked. Accordingly, I pick my pineapples when they are almost completely yellow. The fact that pineapples are non-climacteric fruit also means that store bought fruit won't get any sweeter than the day you buy them. Other non-climacteric fruits include artichoke, asparagus, blackberry, blueberry, cauliflower, cherry, citrus fruits, eggplant, grape, lychee, strawberry and watermelon. In contrast, apple, apricot, avocado, banana, mango, papaya, peach, pear, plum and tomato will all continue to ripen after being picked. Source 1 Source 2

I bet a lot of us have mystery plants. I tried my best to keep everything labeled, but a few got by me. I overplanted anyway because I couldn't give enough away and certainly couldn't throw any away. I just found another GZ hiding in the back and it is quite soft and yellowish with the green stripes. Can't take credit for the picture, Mr. Google had it. Last year my plant didn't make it, so I finally got to taste one. I like them, do you? I think you are on target with the feel, but you will figure it out. I let them get soft at differing levels to see what I like best. Some of the blacks are difficult. I am watching and feeling a Paul Robeson now, because it its not a deep color but feels ripe. I touch and feel my tomatoes a lot......am I strange? ;) I have a yellow and a brown that I grew out from the market gourmet pack. I'll never know what the small yellow is, but it is the second year and it grows like heck. Tangy and prolific. Here a picture some of mine. Early girl or big boy, rosso bruno kumato, san marzano, brandywine, the mystery yellow, and sungold. The GZ is not there but they look just like the picture I linked previously. I also am growing striped german, a bicolor that I loved last year, and the paul robeson. I do have a better boy as well. Now that the heirlooms are coming the hybrid reds are getting frozen for sauce. They just don't compare. When I tasted my first brandywine the other day (last years plant didn't make it)I had a flashback of standing in my grandfather's garden with a shaker of salt and eating them right there warm from the sun. It was amazing. Enough now, I'll save the rest for my therapist. Enjoy, Karen