Watering for best taste

Slg Garden · July 8, 2015

How do you know when and how much to water tomatoes that are in the ground? I think I overwatered mine last year (rookie mistake) and they were mealy and bland. Do you only water when the plants look droopy in the morning or when the top 1" of soil is dry or some other indicator? And, how much do you give them at a time?

Noreaster · July 8, 2015

IMHO, with several years experience.....the plants will tell you. As you mentioned, droopy is what they'll get.

On average, we only water on average 3 times a season. Nature and plastic ground cover take care of the rest.

ramapojoe · July 9, 2015

Quote:

Originally Posted by Noreaster

IMHO, with several years experience.....the plants will tell you. As you mentioned, droopy is what they'll get.

On average, we only water on average 3 times a season. Nature and plastic ground cover take care of the rest.

agreed
so far, not counting two or three initial watering's when I planted them may 15th I have not watered them at all. was ready to water them yesterday and then mother nature did it for me. unless it gets super hot and sunny one good drink a week is all they need. just make sure you give them a healthy drink

KarenO · July 8, 2015

I don't think it's advisable to drought stress plants in search of flavour. Variety is the most important flavour factor really, along with soil conditions. What varieties do you grow?
Blossom end rot is often the result of drought and inconsistent watering. even moisture, neither wet nor dry , is optimal. mulching helps maintain even moisture.
KarenO

Dewayne mater · July 8, 2015

In my opinion, you want to even out the water supply. If it is too dry, the plants will stress and depending on where you are, that will invite the red devils, spider mites. If it is too wet, you can cause your tomatoes to split...this is especially true if it has been dry, then are suddenly soaking wet.

As for taste, I think sun and heat determine whether the tomato has nice, concentrated flavor. Overall, the best formula for awesome tasting tomatoes is plenty of sun, very warm day time temps and an always present water supply for the plants to take when they need it in the amount they need it. That's just an opinion based on experience, no science.

Dewayne Mater

b54red · July 9, 2015

I try to give my plants plenty of water during the first big blooming phase right up til I see the first fruits starting to blush then cut back. The reason for the heavier watering during that phase is to make sure of a good fruit set because drought stress at that stage of the plants development will result in heavy blossom drop and fewer fruits. Once you get a vine full of good fruits it is better to cut back on the watering but not to the point of drooping plants because the flavor will be much better with moderate water while they are ripening. Of course rain always decides to come about that time and mess up your plans but it is kind of hard to control that.

Bill

Slg Garden · July 9, 2015

Thanks for all the input. It's been an unusually dry year in the PNW and we have had the luxury of controlling water, so I want to take advantage of the situation. Sounds like not eying them get too droopy but letting the soil dry a bit is ideal.

July 8, 2015	#1
Slg Garden Tomatovillian™ Join Date: Mar 2015 Location: Seattle area Posts: 76	Watering for best taste How do you know when and how much to water tomatoes that are in the ground? I think I overwatered mine last year (rookie mistake) and they were mealy and bland. Do you only water when the plants look droopy in the morning or when the top 1" of soil is dry or some other indicator? And, how much do you give them at a time?

July 8, 2015	#2
Noreaster Tomatovillian™ Join Date: Feb 2006 Location: Northeast Posts: 260	IMHO, with several years experience.....the plants will tell you. As you mentioned, droopy is what they'll get. On average, we only water on average 3 times a season. Nature and plastic ground cover take care of the rest.

July 8, 2015	#4
KarenO Tomatovillian™ Join Date: Oct 2012 Location: Vancouver Island Posts: 5,931	I don't think it's advisable to drought stress plants in search of flavour. Variety is the most important flavour factor really, along with soil conditions. What varieties do you grow? Blossom end rot is often the result of drought and inconsistent watering. even moisture, neither wet nor dry , is optimal. mulching helps maintain even moisture. KarenO

July 8, 2015	#5
Dewayne mater Tomatovillian™ Join Date: May 2008 Location: DFW, Texas Posts: 1,212	In my opinion, you want to even out the water supply. If it is too dry, the plants will stress and depending on where you are, that will invite the red devils, spider mites. If it is too wet, you can cause your tomatoes to split...this is especially true if it has been dry, then are suddenly soaking wet. As for taste, I think sun and heat determine whether the tomato has nice, concentrated flavor. Overall, the best formula for awesome tasting tomatoes is plenty of sun, very warm day time temps and an always present water supply for the plants to take when they need it in the amount they need it. That's just an opinion based on experience, no science. Dewayne Mater

July 9, 2015	#6
b54red Tomatovillian™ Join Date: Sep 2009 Location: Alabama Posts: 7,068	I try to give my plants plenty of water during the first big blooming phase right up til I see the first fruits starting to blush then cut back. The reason for the heavier watering during that phase is to make sure of a good fruit set because drought stress at that stage of the plants development will result in heavy blossom drop and fewer fruits. Once you get a vine full of good fruits it is better to cut back on the watering but not to the point of drooping plants because the flavor will be much better with moderate water while they are ripening. Of course rain always decides to come about that time and mess up your plans but it is kind of hard to control that. Bill