Q. All the YouTube videos say when tomatoes form and we get a rain, they tend to start splitting. We are on a drip system and have steady water all through the growing season. Any help you can give would be appreciated.
 |
| Tomato fruit splitting |
A. To prevent cracking or splitting of the largest fruit, the best thing to do is to turn on the drip system just before it starts to rain. I know this sounds counterintuitive but here is the scientific explanation.
Science Behind It
Rainwater enters the fruit and causes it to split because of differences in salt concentrations inside the fruit, which include the sugars and starches, and the rainwater. Turning on the drip system when it begins raining puts water into the fruit, diluting the salt concentrations, and helps reduce cracking or splitting of the fruit.
The second thing to do is harvest large fruit close to maturity before it rains and let it ripen inside the house. The fruits most affected by rain are the larger ones and usually red ones. These two things will reduce fruit splitting but not eliminate it unless you are just plain lucky.