Tomato Problem - Green Core

[Issy]

We are growing Shirley tomatoes - they look very ripe but when cut the core is still green - please tell us where we are going wrong - they are grown in the tunnel .

[Scarlet]

I think that will be to do with the weather and your watering regime. They will need regular watering especially in a tunnel.

How hot has it been with you and how often are you watering? Now it's cooler you may find that they will be fine.

Though others may have a different opinion no doubt

[Mark_Riga]

The most likely cause is it being too hot in the tunnel. I grew alicante, supposed to be greenback free, in a polytunnel that got far too hot regularly one summer and they could be beautifully coloured on the outside but contained a lot of hard green core. They were fine in curries and other dishes as long as I chopped them up small. The gardeners delight fared a lot better and were good for salads.

[Issy]

Yes they are in the tunnel - but grown in ring culture pots in soil - then on gravel where the water is kept at an even temperature so apparently we were told that we can never over water.

[Scarlet]

It was probably more to do with the heat? Tunnels can get very hot. The plants can get stressed. Now the weather is cooler I think you'll find that things will improve.

[veggiechicken]

Yes they are in the tunnel - but grown in ring culture pots in soil - then on gravel where the water is kept at an even temperature so apparently we were told that we can never over water.

..........but you can underwater them!
I grow my toms in ring culture pots resting on old compost (where I grow salad leaves etc). The toms need watering every day, sometimes twice.

[Penellype]

I get greenback on the tomatoes (Shirley and Balconi) on my windowsills when it is very hot. There isn't a great deal you can do as it seems to develop while the tomatoes are still green. Now that things have cooled down you should find the later tomatoes are better.