Splitting tomatoes after the rain and a weird looking cuke and new fav bean

After finally getting some decent rain, the morning harvest reveals lots of split tomatoes. Some varieties are more prone to this than others. ‘Sungold’ is an orange cherry that is notorious for splitting, but the flavor is so prized the splitting is overlooked, at least in my garden. Thin skinned varieties, like many of the heirlooms I grow, are also going to split and most do this after already ripening. They fruit expands as the roots send much needed water up the plant. It’s no big deal to me, I’ll just harvest the tomato and leave it on the windowsill until completely ripe. It’s not the sun on the windowsill that ripens them, they just need a little more time and that’s a place I won’t forget about them. When left on the vine, pests can get to them and sometimes they will also start to get moldy and gross.

Pick tomatoes as soon as possible after splitting.

How to stop splitting

Keeping plants watered properly during a dry spell will help avert splitting. Easier said than done with this summers dry weather. Mulching with a thick layer of straw will help too. Varieties with thicker skins will also fight off the problem. I started poking around the Internet looking for resistant varieties and found ‘Sungold’ on a list, which shows you should never trust the web. It will split when there’s a chance of rain!

It’s nothing I worry about, grow a few different varieties, some will split, other’s wont.

Weird Cucumber

I picked this cucumber this morning too. No, it doesn’t look like Abe Lincoln, but it’s two fruits in one. Nature is wonderful!

Morning harvest

It’s nice to get out in the garden early and pick. I’ve been blown away with these ‘Monte Gusto Yellow’ pole beans from Kitchen Garden Seeds. I’ve never grown a bean this productive. Even when they get big, the bean is still crisp and tasty. We’re running out of ideas on how to use them. Do you have a good recipe?