GRAND RAPIDS, MI – Gardeners have noticed green, fully formed tomatoes stubbornly hanging onto their vines, refusing to progress toward the ripe, vibrant vegetables of summer eagerly awaited by many.

Fall is a time of tricky weather, when one day it's warm and sunny and the next, they’re issuing frost warnings. If you're growing tomatoes in your garden, you're used to seeing ripe red ones on the ...