Are striped tomatoes more prone to radial splitting.?

[Shrinkrap]

This is my first year growing striped tomatoes. Out of 9 dwarf varieties, all growing within feet of each other in self watering planters, only Chocolate Lightning, Sweet Adelaide, and Fred's Tie Dye are sporting several healing splits.

Two are Pink Berkeley Tie Dye crosses, if that matters.

I will have to increase the watering from every morning to two or three times a day, which I've done in the past when I noticed wilting in the afternoon, but these stocky, rugose babies are just as perky at 5 PM when it is 105 degrees, as they are in the morning.

All but New Big Dwarf is in dappled shade by 2 PM. The others are Dwarf Golden Heart, Dwarf Blazing Beauty, Dwarf Purple Heart, BrandyFredBrandyFred ( no fruit, no splitting! ). All get watered until water runs out ever morning at 7 AM.

[Spartanburg123]

No, that was just a big rain!

[Shrinkrap]

Okay, but I guess I should have mentioned that I live in California and it hasn't rained in months, and the plants are in self watering planters (Earthboxes) with plastic covers.

It's also intriguing how well healed each split is. I'm imagining it must have started awhile ago, and perhaps was daily or at least gradual.

Does anyone know how these "heal" and whether they will heal after picking?

[Gerardo]

That's too bad you got such bad splitting. Regulating their water intake is probably the best prevention. My Fred's Tie Dye had no splits, both the ones in a RGGs setup and in a container with manual watering.

What's the volume of your SWCs? Can your mix be modified to retain additional moisture? Is a drip irrigation setup out of the question?

I remember some of my PBTD having concentric cracks.

Best of luck with the next batches.

[Shrinkrap]

Thank you!

What is RGG's? PBTD? *

My containers are earthboxes, and the older gardener's supply tomato planters. Not sure about the volume of the GSW's, as they don't make this particular one anymore. I will look up the volume on the earthboxes. There is drip irrigation which fills the reservoirs every morning. Today I added a second and third filling.

I just found this;

"You may find tomatoes with large cracks that form concentric circles around the stem. This splitting is caused by moisture stress, when the fruit becomes too plump too quickly and literally bursts through the skin. This type of cracking typically occurs after a heavy rainfall that follows a dry spell.

Large cracks on tomatoes that radiate down from the stem are caused by heat stress. This splitting occurs during periods of hot, bright sunlight and temperatures above ninety degrees. To help prevent tomato problems caused by moisture or heat stress, try to maintain even moisture for the plants and provide good drainage in the soil. A thick layer of mulch over the plants’ roots will help keep the soil cool and evenly moist. Remove ripe and nearly ripe fruit after a heavy rainfall, before it has a chance to split. Tomatoes that are nearly ripe can be picked and allowed to finish ripening on the kitchen counter".

http://freeplants.com/tomato-promblems.htm

It has been above 100 degrees most of the last ten days. I picked some that where just begining to color several days ago, and the cracking was much less on the same variety. There are two Dwarf Purple hearts in both pictures that have had no cracking problems. The third, at about 11 o'clock, s a striped variety, shown picked green, and then a day later, in the second picture..

* Found one!

PBTD? Pink Berkeley Tie Dye.

[Shrinkrap]

This was interesting! An old gardenweb post!

"Crack-resistant varieties?"

http://forums.gardenweb.com/discussi...tant-varieties

Some quotes, albeit without context;

"There is a HUGE genetic component to splitting and cracking. Part of it is from having thin skin. Part is from a rainfall response pumping extra water into the fruit. Part of it is from the fruit structure, fasciated tomatoes are much more prone to radial splitting near the stem, round tomatoes are much less prone. Another part if from fruit load on the plant, heavier loads tend to be associated with less cracking though this is usually accompanied with variable fruit size."

"Yes, the genetic predisposition for splitting can occur for both radial and concentric splitting at the stem end can and does occur independently from any environmental conditions, but those splits usually scar over and only reopen when there's too much rain or irrigation, and that's when the normal flora of bacteria and fungi in the air can infect and start a rotting process.."

And yes, IMO horizontal splitting, which can occur anywhere on fruits, can occur with ANY variety if there's too much water to uptake and the tomato epidermis can no longer expand to accomodate that water, so the fruits split"

"I probably should not interject this b/c I see no real distinction between "Cracking" and "Splitting" but Rich Snyder, Miss., in The Greenhouse Tomato Handbook states "Splitting is not the same as cracking". He attributes splitting to exposure to very high temperatures or when night temps are low followed by a sunny day."

Ironically, it ends with

"BTW, my experience is that tomatoes grown in a mostly covered container (such as an EarthBox) and which have a more-or-less constant moisture profile have much less cracking than those subject to alternating wet/dry cycles. Might be worth an experiment for you.."

[Gardeneer]

I am not sure but I think this kind of splitting has to do with high daytime temperatures and low night time. High heat can create internal pressure when the tomato is juicy and the skin cannot adjust itself.

[Shrinkrap]

Thanks!.......It's pretty late, even on the west coast!

[zipcode]

Not sure about striped ones, but for sure all black tomatoes (stripes or not) that I tried have been somewhat prone to it. Usually these cracks form, as you said, gradually and since before ripening, that's why they are healed (cracking during ripening is a quick way to rot, since juice will come out and not allow to heal). Also, from my limited experience are more likely to be caused by too less water. Like wilting during day, etc.
My most prone to this this year has been Azoychka, all the bigger fruit have it (not quite as bad as your case).

[ginger2778]

RGGS = Rain Gutter Grow System

[Shrinkrap]

Originally Posted by zipcode

Not sure about striped ones, but for sure all black tomatoes (stripes or not) that I tried have been somewhat prone to it. Usually these cracks form, as you said, gradually and since before ripening, that's why they are healed (cracking during ripening is a quick way to rot, since juice will come out and not allow to heal). Also, from my limited experience are more likely to be caused by too less water. Like wilting during day, etc.
My most prone to this this year has been Azoychka, all the bigger fruit have it (not quite as bad as your case).

Ah! Each of these are listed as black, beneath their stripes.

[Gerardo]

Cool, thanks for chiming in and clearing it up Marsha!

[ginger2778]

Originally Posted by Gerardo

Cool, thanks for chiming in and clearing it up Marsha!

Always there for ya, amigo.