The rind should be firm and glossy and not easily punctured by your thumbnail. The portion that contacts the soil is cream to orange when mature. Harvest squash before a heavy frost. Use your thumbnail to determine this. The silks are dry and brown at this stage.
Tomatoes lose their firmness quickly if they are overripe.
The portion in contact with the soil is cream to yellow when mature. Kenneth R. Bolen, Director of Cooperative Extension, University of Nebraska, Institute of Agriculture and Natural Resources.