Concentric (or circular) cracking I know from Black Krim, which I’ve grown for a few years, in container, and in ground. Taste is pretty good, but it’s far too prone to concentric cracking and rotting for me....I know this is a genetic characteristic and can’t be prevented....plus fruits are not large enough, and production is low. There are other blacks that I would like to try, including JD’s Special C Tex and Black From Tula. - To anyone that has grown Black From Tula, may I please ask how much splitting or cracking you normally see?
The PREDOMINANT PROBLEM for me with most tomatoes is RADIAL splitting (or 'longitudinal'/'pole to pole'… geography major here, haha). In my area it's caused by too much rain. Rain is uncontrollable, and here in NC we have large intervals of drought followed by deluge. The fruit swells faster than the skins, they split open, radiating out from the stem end.
That’s why I’m looking for tough tomatoes that are 'less susceptible' to splitting & cracking....and ones that still taste great (strong tomato taste or ‘aggressive’/ ‘old time’ flavor)....AND will give me more than just a few fruits. In particular, beefsteaks or large fruited, and cherries. There being thousands of tomatoes out there, something is bound to exist that performs decently in my locale & conditions ...though I realize it will be much trial and error. I’m hoping that the help of this forum can steer me in the right direction.
~Caroline