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yumtomatoes

Sun Gold Cherry Tomatoes - Under Water Them!

yumtomatoes
12 years ago

My Sun Gold plant was very productive but I didn't care for the taste of the tomatoes. They were on the tart side and I didn't detect that fruity flavor that others report. And they had thick skin.

So I added a couple of tablespoons of salt to the container soil to see if that would help. Didn't notice a difference.

Then I decided to try to kill the plant by not watering it and during this time we were still getting into the high 80's so it was quite warm. I couldn't believe how long the plant survived with no water and mind you I had to water my Cherokee Purple 2-3x a day to stop it from wilting during this time.

Guess what? The fruit that I picked during this period were fantastic - sweet with a hint of tang and a complex fruity taste that is hard to describe. And the skins weren't as thick.

So I learned that with Sun Gold you have to under water them to get that delicious taste that everyone raves about. At least under water them compared to my beefsteaks.

Comments (8)

  • carolyn137
    12 years ago

    I'm glad that you finally did get to taste the wonderful fruity taste of a ripe one which you attribute to underwatering. But where I live the water comes out of the sky and so for me and others we have no control over that. LOL

    And yet I have one plant of Sungold F1 each season and they've always tasted great which is why I grow it each year. I think one of the mistakes that some make is to pick them when they aren't fully orange, as in really ripe, aside from any watering issues.

    Carolyn

  • yumtomatoes
    Original Author
    12 years ago

    I think one of the mistakes that some make is to pick them when they aren't fully orange, as in really ripe, aside from any watering issues.

    I was waiting for them to get orange, but I thought in general that you could pick tomatoes when you see color break and they would ripen fine on your kitchen countertop? Is it different for the cherry tomatoes?

  • natal
    12 years ago

    I never pick cherry tomatoes early.

  • yumtomatoes
    Original Author
    12 years ago

    I never pick cherry tomatoes early.

    I wonder why cherries are different in that respect from the full-sized tomatoes?

  • barrie2m_(6a, central PA)
    12 years ago

    Cherry tomatoes and especially Sun Gold will split in most cases where they are allowed to fully ripen with water present, either from within or from above. For that reason I prefer SunSugar over Sun Gold even though they will crack to a lesser extent but have about the same flavor and texture. Regardless, an unripe tomatoe will never taste as good as a ripe one and vine ripened still trumps counter top ripened IMO.

  • catman529
    12 years ago

    I under watered my whole garden last year. Some water at the beginning to help transplant shock, then maybe once or twice for the rest of the whole season. Did well through 90+ hot weather and produced fine. The bugs I think were a bit of a problem but other than that, I got good tomatoes and saved a ton of water.

    Basically if you don't water much early in the season, they grow deeper roots and tap into more water in the ground so you don't have to water them.

  • yumtomatoes
    Original Author
    12 years ago

    I have realized that underwatering and leaving the fruit on the vine as long as possible is the way to go for the best tasting tomatoes. I grow in containers in the dry season here so I have to water more than those of you who plant in the ground. I have to watch out for BER since we get no rain at all this time of year.

  • timmy1
    12 years ago

    What Bmoser Said ^^^^