veggies not ripening

Hi:
My wife and I started our first SFG this year and we are running into some problems. Specifically our veggies aren't ripening. The tomatos are coing in full force but are remaining green. Our cukes are also growing big but are not turning green. Additionally our green beans have not produced flowers sot they are not producing green beans. I have used Fish Organic fertilizer twice over the last month but have only had success with my squash producing fruit. Everything is growing well and appears to be healthy. What am I missing?

First of all, hello and welcome!

Re tomatoes not ripening, they've always seemed kind of unpredictable to me. I'm not sure that's a bad sign.

Re no flowers on the beans, that may be related to something else you bring up -- using fish fertilizer a couple times in a single month. Fish fertilizer, if I recall correctly, tends to be high in nitrogen. That's what you want for leafy green growth. Too much of that can actually impede the progress to setting fruit -- the plant will be happy to instead just grow, grow, grow. For flowering/fruiting, you want more phosphorous-based fertilization, or even no fertilization at all, which sometimes signals to plants they'd better get a move on and produce some seeds if they want to produce another generation.

It's not that fish fertilizers have no phosphorous, either; just that plants often seem to react very strongly to nitrogen and take it as a signal to keep growing.

Note that rapid growth can produce huge but weak, easily broken plants, too, and ones without the root structure to properly feed all their greenery, especially should things suddenly turn hot and dry. or especially windy. Be careful on how frequently you're feeding, especially with high-nitrogen fertilizers. Generally you'll be better served by building up a rich soil than by doing a lot of fertilizing.

Thanks for your advice... and the welcome. Maybe theyll ripen yet.

Patience is something the gardener must learn...

And I agree with the over fertilizing comment.

Jasony,  Welcome to the Forum from California!  

I'm sure most of us have made a mistake, or two, or 20. You've already received some replies, so by now you know that the fish fertilizer may be the cause of no fruits.  If you made your SFG Mel's Mix correctly, using 5 sources/types of compost for the 1/3 part of the Mix, the Mix should be nutritious enough for growth and fruiting.  One of the things about Mel's Mix is that you only add more 5-way compost every time you plant from here on.  Some times, a plant will tell you it is a little low in some nutrient and you may have to add that nutrient.  I think most of us use only compost for the nutrition, where it slowly releases the nutrients over time.  From here on, patience.  Maybe half way through the season, top dress with a little more of the compost, especially if it is a crop that grows and produces for a long time.

Tomato fruits take forever and ever to come to the point of harvest.    What variety are you growing and what is the Days to Maturity.  Also, is it in full sun.  I have about  6 tomato varieties that only get about 6 hours sun and they have just been sitting there still green.  I also have the same 6 tomato varieties in another location that gets full sun and they have been ripening for about 3 weeks.

Here is a time line of one variety of tomato.
http://web.archive.org/web/20101218050351/http:/tomatosite.com/index.php?NT=Cultivation&RE=Truss_Timeline

You know, that video is really how it is sometimes with tomatoes...they are the reason most of us want a backyard harvest, there is really nothing like a warm, red mater from the vine.  But they are hinky, and go from good to burst/blight/whatev in a day...but they are still worth the effort in the long run.  Here in north central/nw ohio it takes them forever to fruit and ripen.  Cherry  varieties are more dependable, I always plant one.  

Be patient and see what you get!

Belated jasony  
from Kelejan

And a belated Happy Birthday!