Why do tomatoes crack on the bush in open ground and in a greenhouse when ripe?

Growing tomatoes is not an easy task. It takes a lot of effort to enjoy these delicious vegetables in the summer. Problems can occur at any stage of growing tomatoes.

The tomato is a capricious one. He doesn’t like it, it doesn’t suit him. One causes the ovary to fall off, another causes the leaves to curl, and the third causes spots to appear.

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Are the tomato leaves turning black and brown spots visible on the fruits? Find out what diseases could cause these and other symptoms!

But even if all these diseases and misfortunes were avoided, and all your tomatoes as one are healthy, handsome, do not rush to breathe a sigh of relief. Healthy ripening tomatoes also have problems. One of the most common is fruit cracking.

The danger of cracks in tomatoes

The cracks themselves have a cosmetic defect, which makes them unsuitable for mass sale. In addition, they are not suitable for preservation, since when exposed to boiling water, the skin will be removed and the pulp will boil. But these shortcomings are only half the story.

The main danger is that cracks in tomatoes serve as entry points for various infections.

Once inside the vegetable, pathogenic microorganisms cause the active development of the disease. The fruits rot from the inside. These tomatoes are not suitable for human consumption.

If the peel begins to burst, this indicates a violation of the process of growing the crop, and if the influence of unfavorable factors is not removed, then fungal, viral or bacterial infections will join the harmless cracks.

Common mistakes

Now let's talk about the most common mistakes that gardeners make when trying to “cure” tomatoes from cracking.

Most often, having noticed cracks, the summer resident begins to water the plants even more intensely. This only makes the problem worse.

The second common mistake is improper feeding. The plant does not need nitrogen and phosphorus fertilizers during fruiting. But tomatoes will like potassium. Also, tomatoes often lack boron.

Well, the third common mistake is ignoring the problem.

In principle, you can ignore cracked tomatoes if you grow them for yourself.

But in general, this disease affects the harvest, because the cracked part is usually cut off. As a result, up to a third of the fruit is thrown away.

Types of cracking

If you carefully examine the defects on the tomatoes, you can see that they are different.

Therefore, there are several types of cracking.

Radial

The formation of cracks in the stalk, which radiate in different directions.

Causes:

temperature changes;
insufficient watering with periods of increased soil moisture;
varietal feature;
boron deficiency.

Concentric cracking

Cracks form at the stalk and spread throughout the vegetable in the form of circles and semicircles.

Causes:

the use of large amounts of nitrogen-containing fertilizers;
water balance disturbances;
feature of some varieties.

Mesh

The formation of a net-like pattern at the top of the tomato due to the separation of the pericarb (layer under the skin). It differs at the stage of fruit formation, while they are still green.

Causes:

injury to the flower during flowering;
cold snap during the formation of buds and ovaries;
high nitrogen content in the soil or excess calcium with a lack of potassium.

More often found in large-fruited varieties.

The safest type of cracks, since the damage is microscopic in size and is characterized by rapid scarring.

Stage 5. Use fertilizers wisely

Sometimes, even with uniform and regular watering and following all the rules of care, tomato fruits become covered with cracks when ripe. This situation may be associated with excess nitrogen or the application of concentrated fertilizers. Plus, cracking of tomatoes is possible due to a lack of essential microelements.

Calculation of a nutrient solution for feeding tomatoes in a greenhouse

To obtain healthy and even fruits, the summer resident must carefully monitor the appearance of the plant throughout its growing season. If tomato leaves take on an unnatural color and appearance, become curled and yellow-brown, then the vegetable clearly requires additional nutrients.

Attention! The use of trace element concentrates will definitely lead to the appearance of cracks in tomatoes. To feed the plant, it is enough to dilute the fertilizer in a ratio of 20 g per 10 liters of water.

A similar dosage is used when applying nitrogen fertilizer. Particular care must be taken to ensure proper feeding during the ripening of tomatoes.

Nitrogen fertilizer for tomatoes

Prices for Azofoska

azophoska

In addition to the listed techniques to prevent the appearance of cracks in tomatoes, the summer resident is not recommended to expose the plant trunk too much. It is advisable to pluck no more than 3 leaves from one bush over a period of 7 days.

Possible options for forming tomato bushes in a greenhouse

The rules for preventing tomatoes from cracking are not complicated. The use of specially designed seeds and proper agricultural technology can guarantee the summer resident a powerful harvest of tomatoes with smooth and beautiful skin.

In the greenhouse during ripening

Most often, tomatoes crack when grown in greenhouses.

There are several unfavorable factors that contribute to fruit damage.

Incorrect temperature conditions (microclimate disturbances)

Normal fruit development occurs at temperatures from 22 to 25°C. Maintaining this temperature without additional effort is not always possible.

In open ground when ripe

Tomatoes growing in open ground are also susceptible to adverse factors that lead to cracks.

Many problems are identical to greenhouse conditions: varietal characteristics, improper watering, lack of chemicals and improper use of fertilizers.

However, there are also some peculiarities. Reasons that cause cracking in tomatoes only in open ground.

Temperature changes

At night, the temperature drops sharply, which leads to the accumulation of moisture in the fruits due to reduced evaporation.

This leads to increased stress on the tomato epidermis and the formation of skin defects. If you water after sunset, this effect can be avoided.

Abundant hydration during rains

It is not always possible to guess the combination of watering and rain. Sometimes these two processes follow each other. Then excess moisture forms in the soil, which quickly accumulates in the tomatoes, causing them to crack.

To prevent this, it is recommended to organize a watering schedule and use mulching, as well as monitor the weather forecast.

How to prepare seeds and soil to prevent tomatoes from cracking

A competent gardener begins caring for a plant before planting seedlings, and not at the ripening stage.

In this case, you cannot get rid of future cracks, but you can protect tomatoes from bactericidal diseases.

Seed processing

If seeds were purchased by weight from a private seller or nursery, they should be disinfected. There are several ways:

The dry method involves keeping the seeds in the sun. They should be poured onto a sheet of paper and placed on the sunny side of the windowsill. Within a week, under the influence of ultraviolet rays, they will be freed from pathogenic microbes. The seeds should be stirred from time to time. If the days are rainy, you can use an ultraviolet lamp instead of the sun.
Another method of dry disinfection is the use of a fungicidal drug. Sold in powder form. Place the seeds in a container with the product and shake it for 2 minutes. As a result, each seed is covered with a thin film of the drug. Biological agents not only disinfect seeds, but also have a positive effect on germination time. You can use Fitosporin M or Baktofit.
Wet disinfection involves preparing a solution for treating seeds. It is produced in a 1% manganese solution by placing tomatoes there for 40 minutes.
You can replace potassium permanganate with hydrogen peroxide. It needs to be diluted in lukewarm water to create a 3% solution. Keep the seeds in the solution for no more than 9 minutes.
Mustard solution – 1 tsp. half a glass of water, but you need to keep the seed in it for 3 hours.
The seeds are kept in a solution of boric acid (01, g in 0.5 liters of water) for a day.

Note! The seeds are first placed in a small fabric bag and dipped in a liquid disinfectant. After the process is completed, the seed material is washed in cool water and dried on a sheet of paper. Now he is ready to grow seedlings and ripen crops.

Preparing the greenhouse for planting tomatoes

The biggest problem in a greenhouse is the lack of moisture in the soil. It occurs during intense heat in summer. To improve the situation, gardeners begin to intensively water their tomatoes. But excess water is harmful to ripe tomatoes. This causes them to crack.

To normalize the humidity level, you need to pour special soil with increased moisture capacity into the beds of the greenhouse.

Thermal conditions should also be observed. If the nights are cold, it makes sense to put a heater in the greenhouse and turn it on at night. This applies to temperatures below 14ºC.

Tomato diseases

If all the conditions for growing tomatoes are met, but the fruits continue to deteriorate and an increasing number of bushes become infected, then it is worth thinking about the presence of specific diseases.

Alternaria "dry spotting"

Fungal infection of tomatoes, which is characterized by the appearance of dry spots on fruits and leaves.

On tomatoes, the spots look like overgrown cracks, but over time the disease progresses, affecting most of the foliage and leading to its death.

Fungicides are used to eliminate fungi. If treatment does not help, the plant should be removed to prevent infection of other crops.

Apical rot

Appears on green fruits. Unripe tomatoes begin to rot from the top. Usually the entire fetus is not affected. The disease is caused by a lack of calcium.

Gray rot

A fungal infection that causes rotting of standing tomatoes. Affects stems, leaves and fruits. Develops in conditions of high humidity. The spots have a dark gray tint.

Causes of cracks in greenhouse tomatoes

Tomatoes that grow in greenhouse conditions are also not protected from the appearance of all kinds of defects during the ripening period. As with soil, cracking can be caused by unsuitable weather conditions. Most often, cracks appear in tomatoes that are light yellow varieties, and sometimes the cause is the dense pulp of the fruit.

The main mistake gardeners make is confusion in determining why tomatoes are cracking in the greenhouse. Some consider this a manifestation of plant diseases and try to cure it, thereby exacerbating the problem. A defect appears only due to a change in growing conditions and the cause may be:

Temperature too high.
Increased soil moisture.
Irregular abundant watering.
High content of concentrated nutrition in the kidney.
Deficiency of minerals or trace elements in the soil (manifested by severe yellowing of leaves).
An unsuitable tomato variety for growing in a greenhouse.

In this case, the way out of the situation would be to create favorable conditions for growth. To prevent the skin from becoming rough and then ugly cracks appearing, you should create suitable conditions for growth in the greenhouse:

Temperature support no higher than 16 degrees Celsius.
Regularly moisten the soil in small amounts.
Use only diluted fertilizers in small quantities.

But sometimes even this does not protect the fruits, and they burst before they even have time to ripen. This problem is not uncommon, but the reasons will be different from those mentioned above.

How to avoid cracking tomatoes

To maintain the health of vegetable crops, you should follow a few simple rules:

Clean the greenhouse in the autumn. It includes removing old leaves and fruits, digging up the soil, and applying preventative medications and fertilizers.
Do not plant tomatoes and plants of the Solanaceae family nearby. Particularly dangerous is the proximity of tomatoes to potatoes, since the latter is often a source of diseases that quickly affect the vegetable crop.
Drugs for treating tomato diseases should be used strictly according to the instructions and in the indicated dosages.
Organize regular watering. On hot days, the schedule is 1 time every 3 days, in cloudy weather - 1 time a week. The best option is to organize drip irrigation.
Using mulching to protect the soil. Straw or grass clippings will do.
Regularly ventilate the greenhouse and maintain its temperature.
Choose varieties that are resistant to cracking (more on this later).

What causes cracks to appear in green tomatoes?

When defects appear in an unripe fruit, this does not allow it to ripen normally. Bacteria almost immediately enter the crack, and on one side the tomato can turn red and on the other it can already rot. Such a harvest will please few people, especially the gardener who has invested a lot of time and effort into growing tomatoes. What causes green tomatoes to burst?

In the garden or in the greenhouse during the ovary period, there was high humidity, most often above 70% and for a long time.
The soil was overdried and then abundantly moistened.
Incorrect watering of the plant.
Wrong choice of variety.
Increased concentration of fertilizers or incorrect dosage during dilution.
Lack of moisture in the root system or severe exposure of the trunk.

Cracks most often become a major problem for summer residents who come to visit their farm only on weekends. Within a week, the soil dries out, and the skin of the fruit becomes rough, and with abundant watering, it softens and cracks. Therefore, it is possible to avoid the appearance of a defect in green tomatoes only if they are provided with uniform moisture and temperature conditions.

Calcium and boron against cracking of tomatoes

Not many people know, but these two fertilizers only work when used together, since calcium absorption does not occur without boron.

To reduce cracking of tomatoes, it is recommended to add calcium nitrate with boric acid to the soil. Such a cocktail will not only protect the plants and have a stimulating effect on the processes of growth and ripening of fruits.

Varieties not prone to cracking

When choosing a tomato variety, it is necessary to take into account their resistance to cracking. The corresponding mark is placed on the package with ready-made seeds. Varieties have dense pulp and elastic skin.

What else can you do with tomatoes if they have already begun to spoil?

If there are a lot of tomatoes with defects, and you can’t simply eat them, then you can use them to prepare various dishes:

Tomato sauce - when preparing it, the peel and defects are removed, and the remaining pulp is heat treated.
Tomato paste – prepared from tomatoes by baking them.
Tomato oil - ripe vegetables are baked, the peel is removed, spices and herbs are added and everything is mixed with butter.
Salad dressing – mix ripe tomato juice with vinegar and spices.
Freeze - remove defects, cut into cubes or slices and blast freeze.

Compliance with agricultural technology, timely and rational application of fertilizers and disease prevention help preserve tomatoes in marketable condition and be used for various purposes without restrictions.

How do you deal with cracking tomatoes? Share your experience in the comments.