Summer has been unseasonably cold and wet, causing trouble for many tomato plants in the Chicagoland area. But the weather hasn’t slowed the growth of our tomato plants—many of which are more than six feet tall.

Our tomatoes are doing so well that we were able to harvest a handful of red cherry and sungold tomatoes.

Following Jeanne Nolan’s harvesting instructions; we based our harvest on color and touch. Once the tomato changed from green to red or orange-yellow, for red cherry and sungold tomatoes respectively, we tested the texture of each tomato.

Gently pressing into the skin of the tomato, we tested to see if it would give a little as well as feel somewhat soft. The tomatoes that passed this test were harvested, and those that were still too firm were left on the vine to continue growing.