Gardeners carefully cultivate tomatoes: they look after flower beds, remove weeds from them, use. Despite this, many of them suddenly notice cracks on the fruit. Why is this happening? How to solve this problem? You can find answers to these questions in this article.
Cracks on tomatoes most often appear in the peduncles. They can take the form of circular furrows that form around it or simple cracks running from the stalk along the fruit.
The fruit begins to crack when after a long period of drought they suddenly get excess water. This happens most often at the turn of May and June, when we deal with heat and then with heavy, cool rains.
The reasons for this phenomenon should also be seen in the wrong wateringso when we provide them with too much water during drought. Both in the first and second case, the interior of the tomatoes begins to grow faster than the skin, which causes stress and cracks.
Another cause of fruit cracking is too high air humidity, which mainly applies to plants grown in greenhouses. This phenomenon may also be exaggerated with leaf covering or nitrogen over -breaking.
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The most important is the proper watering of tomatoeswhich we consider to be the most common cause of their cracking. In hot weather, we need to hydrate plants often, but with less water.
We should also control the level of soil hydration. Sometimes it happens that it looks dry on top, although it can really be damp. So let’s check it with your finger or humidity meter.
During irrigation, do not pour the water after tomatoes. Let’s try to direct the water stream straight under the bush. We also recommend mulching the substrate e.g. grass or straw. Thanks to these materials, we will limit the evaporation and maintain an adequate moisture level in the ground.
Let’s not announce the tomatoes too much. Let’s leave a dozen or so leaves on each bush. Let us also remember that nitrogen fertilization is needed, but in the initial stage, when stems and leaves grow. Later, we must “switch” to fertilizers rich in phosphorus, potassium and calcium.
In the case of surface cracks on immature tomatoes, we can leave them on the bush. However, if the pulp has been exposed, it is better to break and throw away such fruits.
Some put such cracked tomatoes on a sunny windowsill and wait for them to mature. However, there is a risk of luring. Mature, cracked fruit is suitable for food if they are not too soft and do not emit an unpleasant smell.
