Allotment Gardening Advice Help Chat
Growing => Grow Your Own => Topic started by: strangerachael on June 30, 2009, 22:09
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I picked and tasted my first ripe greenhouse tomato today. The flavour was lovely :) but the skin was tough as old boots :tongue2: Why do greenhouse tomatoes always do this? I have shaded the glass with old sheets and keep the door open in hot weather but I think it's the heat that causes the problem as the outdoor ones are usually much better (but they are not ripe yet). I have put a few green ones in a box to ripen in the house to see if that helps, but if not then it's out with the passata maker and all the toughies will be made into sauce.
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My greenhouse toms (G. Delight) are not yet as big as peas. Maybe your early, presumably heated, cultivation has something to do with it? I have always thought that the skins of G. Delight are rather thick but not as bad as you appear to indicate.
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Nowhere idea about toms, so its just a thought
Maybe more watering before picking? A big drench a day or two before and then pick in the morning? Im going to keep this in mind now youve posted it
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You don't say what variety they are.... Some skins are thicker than others.
Careful drenching the toms just before picking Peapod, too much and you'll cause them to split - then they'll never make it back to the kitchen ::) :D
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You don't say what variety they are.... Some skins are thicker than others.
Careful drenching the toms just before picking Peapod, too much and you'll cause them to split - then they'll never make it back to the kitchen ::) :D
Was thinking that the day before would stop that? Or is it still not a good idea?
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It is certainly partly due to the variety. Commercial varieties are tested for skin toughness as it increases shelf life. Moral - use non-commercial, possibly heritage varieties.
Careful steady watering is also important. Erratic watering leads to blossom end rot or splitting but give them plenty of water regularly should minimise the problems and give the thinnest possible skins.
Cheers,
Gillie
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As others have said the variety makes a big difference.
I've found over the years that the first one or two tomatoes can be a bit tougher and not so sweet tasting due to the amount of time they have taken to ripen. Once the plant gets into full flow and fruit are ripening faster then the taste can improve and skins get less tough.
This year my first tomatoes (New Girl) picked a couple of days ago have been delicious and not tough.
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I have various varieties - the first ones to ripen were the Sungold F1, I have also tried a gardeners delight this morning and that was slightly better. I water pretty regularly, in the evening. It will be interesting to see if they improve as they start ripening quicker as JWK suggests.