What causes tomatoes to crack?

[kedigato]

Tomatoes Bursting or Cracking



Question

What causes tomatoes to burst while growing?



Answer

Tomatoes can burst or crack when the plants go through a dry spell and then receive excessive moisture. The water causes the fruit to expand faster than the outer skin can grow so it splits. These cracks often radiate or encircle the stem.

It's pretty easy to prevent your tomatoes from cracking. Just give them consistent moisture, especially when the fruits are forming. A layer of mulch will help keep the soil evenly moist.

You can also try varieties that are breed to be less prone to cracking. A few crack resistant tomatoes include Cherry's Delight, Creole FA, Mountain Pride VFF, Marglobe, Peron and Red Calabash.

Cracked tomatoes are edible. They don't keep very long and should be eaten quickly, but that's not much of a problem for a homegrown tomato, is it?




From the P Allen Smith Newsletter

[DAG]

for the link kedi!

Ummmmmmmm......I wish it was as simple as that! ;D

No mention of growing them in a greenhouse I notice!

Varieties that are less prone to cracking..........well I bet they lack flavour and have tough skins then!

The real answer is to anticipate what the weather is going to do at the time of watering.............sometimes the crystal ball lets me down. ;D

[shadowdragon]

I actually have grown heirloom varieties as well as those that are bred to resist cracking. I find no lack of flavor nor tough skins in those that are crack resistant. In fact here, where we can go two weeks or more with no rain and then have wild storms that can dump 8 inches of rain in a single night, the crack resistant are preferable.

edited to add that I have not grown any of the varieties listed in the article so I can't speak for them.