If you have done any tomato growing at all, you no doubt have noticed that after touching the green stems, and especially after tomato harvesting, you get a stain all over your hands which turns yellow under water, stains towels, and is impossible to remove. What is this stuff and how can you clean it? In this post I’ll tell you how to remove tomato stains from your hands.
You’ve been harvesting tomatoes all day… all week long! What a great crop! Yay You! I can’t wait to see your pictures. You get inside and you’ve got that crusty, dusty yellow gunk all over your hands from the tomato plants.
This gunk, which has a slightly yellowish tinge when on your hands, but when it builds up is black, actually has a name. It is called “tomato tar”. This is an oily substance secreted by the hairs on the stems of the tomato plant. This is why you can get the gunk on your hands at any time when your tomatoes are growing, but it is most obvious when harvesting.
The oily substance (called alcylsugars) is part of the defense mechanism of your tomato plant. This is what gives the plants their distinctive tomato smell, and also what repels many insects that might otherwise eat your tomato leaves.
When you try to wash it off of your hands, it is very difficult to remove. You can see a bright yellow stream running off your hands into the sink, but most of the tar stays on your hands. Soap doesn’t work, laundry detergent or toothpaste are often recommended, but they don’t work. Worse, after washing your hands several times and drying them on a towel, your towel turns a bright yellow.
Thing is, this “tar” is not water soluble. that’s why it is so hard to wash off your hands. I used to use a designated tub of wipes specifically formulated for greasy countertops. This worked, but I hated using the harsh chemicals on my hands. But it was the only thing that worked for me. Until recently!!
What do I now use that works like a charm and is totally safe? VINEGAR! I do not use it full strength, though. This would dry out your hands very quickly. I have a diluted vinegar and water mix in a spray bottle that I use for cleaning rabbit litter boxes. This works like a charm for tomato tar!
Here’s another quick tip – you are probably using paper towels so that you don’t get the ugly yellow on your hand towels. If so, hopefully you are composting the paper towels and not throwing them into the garbage where they enter the landfill. If you do not have a compost area, you can use a dark colored towel so that any residual tomato tar doesn’t show up. But once you start using the dilute vinegar solution, there won’t be too much!
Good luck with your tomato harvest! 🙂
Thank you! Good info, clearly presented, not oversimplified, science behind it included.
Bravo!!