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#1
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Upside-down Tomato Gardens
MikeCT wrote:
Whilst attending to my G-Mail yesterday (31/03/07), I noticed an ad from Amazon.com regarding Upside-down Tomato Gardens. Wondering if I was looking at an April fool ad from Amazon, a day early, I had a look at the Upside-down Tomato Garden website. It seems that growing tomatoes upside-down in special containers, only available in America, gives you more tomatoes per plant than you would hope to get growing them upright. I've grown tumbler tomatoes in hanging baskets with some success, but would never had thought of growing the whole plant upside-down. MikeCT the older neighbor up on the ridge above me has been growing tomato's in two gallon buckets "upside down" now for over five years. He uses one of those iron hanging pot post things that used to be sold for people to plug into their front yards and hang five hanging pots from. The tomato's are the vining types, not the bush varieties. He grows them in full sun, the buckets are drilled with a three inch bit. He uses good compost and hangs the buckets (five gallon buckets are too heavy, but he came over with his drill bit and he advised me to half fill the buckets to keep the weight of the soil, plant and moister to a minimal, since these buckets usually hold that much weight and more......like those buckets you see at the huge box stores that sell detergents, or drywall mud, or even cat food! A metal handle with the plastic sleeve for the hand is essential. we bored the holes, I bought Mr. Stripey, Sungold cherry and Mortgage lifter tomato plants at Lowes, plucked the lower leaves off like I would when I plant them in the ground or in the buckets I grow them in on my kitchen deck (balcony, etc......) and threaded them through the hole, filling the bucket half full of good soil. Not too rich, mind you, all leaf and no fruit! LOL I hung them from the deck railings from iron hooks that easily supported the weight of the plants, the soil and the rains and waterings. Unfortunately I underestimated the need for MORE sunlight since the young maple tree and Pawlonia hogged the south and western sunlight. You can use ANY vining type of tomato, and they have to be hung in direct sunlight. Since they benefit from any rains, and drain well, the only thing you need to do is plant the seedling tomato plant deep to allow the whole stem to make roots (which I do anyway when planting them to grow upright. Makes for a stronger plant and they feed better and produce just as well.....) The soil might trickle out from the stem when you do this, so I took a piece of fine window screening (not the metal, but the plastic stuff they use now) or landscape fabric or even cheese cloth, or even a COFFEE FILTER and slit an opening to thread the plant through to keep the soil from washing out. Heirloom, vining types would work fine, I'm sure the determinant, bush varieties would work just fine as well.....you'd just get all the tomato's at once like you would when they grew upright. And cherry tomatos....ahhhh, excellent! Tomato's? Better boy, Stripey, Cherokee Purple, Beefmaster, Early Girl, Aunt Ruby's Green, Pruden's Purple, Yellow Amish, paste tomatos, you name it. full sun, good soil but not TOO rich (too rich makes beautiful leaves and little fruit). This year, the buckets will hang out front where they'll get full southern and western sunlight as I don't have much direct sunlight anywhere else and want tomato's everywhere and I have raised beds of perennials where I have the sunlight required for tomato's and peppers. (I also have my spinach and lettuce in buckets, will grow my okra and squash in buckets as well and stage them on the steps where they'll get at least seven hours sunlight.......and my friend will let me plant the rest of my seeds in her garden that gets direct sunlight for more gratification of productivity. Make sure you have good sturdy hooks to hang the handles from. And that the buckets are the kind that holds heavy stuff. I scrounged the buckets people buy pool chemicals in five gallon size with the ringed tops because it's a tough bucket and won't split. You don't want a flimsy bucket. I'd bet you could use galvanized ones, but why ruin a good bucket? Now if you had a bucket that had a hole in it............as long as the handle was secure, you'd be in business. And by the way, those really huge hanging baskets would be excellent as well, just make sure the wires are thick enough to support the weight of the soil, plant and watering threaded through the holes. Sometimes you can get those tough fibre pots when a plant dies that has hangers on them at the box stores when they toss them. I'd water them with diluted bleach water to kill diseases and drill a small hole in the bottom for the tomato and you're in business. I also use chains threaded through the holes on the hanging larger baskets to insure support..... Good luck! Keep us posted on your success. madgardener up on the ridge, back in Fairy Holler, overlooking English Mountain in Eastern Tennessee, zone 7, Sunset zone 36 The plant does fine. Heavy fruit? please. How does the vines when they're upright support the fruit? The same way! We're not talking 10 pound 'maters here folks. I've seen Mr. Cates pick off a pound tomato off his and there was no problem. I asked him what the possibility of growing eggplant or peppers on top of the soil while the tomato grew upside down underneath would be, and he said that since they both required the same light, and as long as I fed the plants, he saw no problem! Or even marigolds to deter pests.......... companions for tomatos are carrots, cucumbers, parsley, peppers, allies are Basil repelling flies and mosquito's, improves growth and flavor. Bee balm, chives and mint improve health and flavor. Dill, until mature, improves growth and vigor. Once mature though, it stunts tomato growth. Marigolds deter nematodes. Pot marigolds deter tomato horn worms and general garden pests. and for your information......I've planted potato's in a bushel basket, layering them in soil and leaves and at the end of the growth, just dumped the basket out and there were the spuds! LOL |
#2
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Upside-down Tomato Gardens
On 2 Apr, 07:29, madgardener wrote:
MikeCT wrote: Whilst attending to my G-Mail yesterday (31/03/07), I noticed an ad from Amazon.com regarding Upside-down Tomato Gardens. Wondering if I was looking at an April fool ad from Amazon, a day early, I had a look at the Upside-down Tomato Garden website. It seems that growing tomatoes upside-down in special containers, only available in America, gives you more tomatoes per plant than you would hope to get growing them upright. I've grown tumbler tomatoes in hanging baskets with some success, but would never had thought of growing the whole plant upside-down. MikeCT the older neighbor up on the ridge above me has been growing tomato's in two gallon buckets "upside down" now for over five years. He uses one of those iron hanging pot post things that used to be sold for people to plug into their front yards and hang five hanging pots from. The tomato's are the vining types, not the bush varieties. He grows them in full sun, the buckets are drilled with a three inch bit. He uses good compost and hangs the buckets (five gallon buckets are too heavy, but he came over with his drill bit and he advised me to half fill the buckets to keep the weight of the soil, plant and moister to a minimal, since these buckets usually hold that much weight and more......like those buckets you see at the huge box stores that sell detergents, or drywall mud, or even cat food! A metal handle with the plastic sleeve for the hand is essential. we bored the holes, I bought Mr. Stripey, Sungold cherry and Mortgage lifter tomato plants at Lowes, plucked the lower leaves off like I would when I plant them in the ground or in the buckets I grow them in on my kitchen deck (balcony, etc......) and threaded them through the hole, filling the bucket half full of good soil. Not too rich, mind you, all leaf and no fruit! LOL I hung them from the deck railings from iron hooks that easily supported the weight of the plants, the soil and the rains and waterings. Unfortunately I underestimated the need for MORE sunlight since the young maple tree and Pawlonia hogged the south and western sunlight. You can use ANY vining type of tomato, and they have to be hung in direct sunlight. Since they benefit from any rains, and drain well, the only thing you need to do is plant the seedling tomato plant deep to allow the whole stem to make roots (which I do anyway when planting them to grow upright. Makes for a stronger plant and they feed better and produce just as well.....) The soil might trickle out from the stem when you do this, so I took a piece of fine window screening (not the metal, but the plastic stuff they use now) or landscape fabric or even cheese cloth, or even a COFFEE FILTER and slit an opening to thread the plant through to keep the soil from washing out. Heirloom, vining types would work fine, I'm sure the determinant, bush varieties would work just fine as well.....you'd just get all the tomato's at once like you would when they grew upright. And cherry tomatos....ahhhh, excellent! Tomato's? Better boy, Stripey, Cherokee Purple, Beefmaster, Early Girl, Aunt Ruby's Green, Pruden's Purple, Yellow Amish, paste tomatos, you name it. full sun, good soil but not TOO rich (too rich makes beautiful leaves and little fruit). This year, the buckets will hang out front where they'll get full southern and western sunlight as I don't have much direct sunlight anywhere else and want tomato's everywhere and I have raised beds of perennials where I have the sunlight required for tomato's and peppers. (I also have my spinach and lettuce in buckets, will grow my okra and squash in buckets as well and stage them on the steps where they'll get at least seven hours sunlight.......and my friend will let me plant the rest of my seeds in her garden that gets direct sunlight for more gratification of productivity. Make sure you have good sturdy hooks to hang the handles from. And that the buckets are the kind that holds heavy stuff. I scrounged the buckets people buy pool chemicals in five gallon size with the ringed tops because it's a tough bucket and won't split. You don't want a flimsy bucket. I'd bet you could use galvanized ones, but why ruin a good bucket? Now if you had a bucket that had a hole in it............as long as the handle was secure, you'd be in business. And by the way, those really huge hanging baskets would be excellent as well, just make sure the wires are thick enough to support the weight of the soil, plant and watering threaded through the holes. Sometimes you can get those tough fibre pots when a plant dies that has hangers on them at the box stores when they toss them. I'd water them with diluted bleach water to kill diseases and drill a small hole in the bottom for the tomato and you're in business. I also use chains threaded through the holes on the hanging larger baskets to insure support..... Good luck! Keep us posted on your success. madgardener up on the ridge, back in Fairy Holler, overlooking English Mountain in Eastern Tennessee, zone 7, Sunset zone 36 The plant does fine. Heavy fruit? please. How does the vines when they're upright support the fruit? The same way! We're not talking 10 pound 'maters here folks. I've seen Mr. Cates pick off a pound tomato off his and there was no problem. I asked him what the possibility of growing eggplant or peppers on top of the soil while the tomato grew upside down underneath would be, and he said that since they both required the same light, and as long as I fed the plants, he saw no problem! Or even marigolds to deter pests.......... companions for tomatos are carrots, cucumbers, parsley, peppers, allies are Basil repelling flies and mosquito's, improves growth and flavor. Bee balm, chives and mint improve health and flavor. Dill, until mature, improves growth and vigor. Once mature though, it stunts tomato growth. Marigolds deter nematodes. Pot marigolds deter tomato horn worms and general garden pests. and for your information......I've planted potato's in a bushel basket, layering them in soil and leaves and at the end of the growth, just dumped the basket out and there were the spuds! LOL "There's a hole in my bucket dear Mad'e dear Mad'e There's a hole in my bucket dear mad'e a hole. Then Plant it dear.................. David Hill Abacus Nurseries |
#3
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Upside-down Tomato Gardens
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growth. Marigolds deter nematodes. Pot marigolds deter tomato horn worms and general garden pests. and for your information......I've planted potato's in a bushel basket, layering them in soil and leaves and at the end of the growth, just dumped the basket out and there were the spuds! LOL "There's a hole in my bucket dear Mad'e dear Mad'e There's a hole in my bucket dear mad'e a hole. Then Plant it dear.................. David Hill Abacus Nurseries Youre showing your age David... |
#4
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Upside-down Tomato Gardens
On 4/2/07 9:02 PM, in article
, "Jack" wrote: ato growth. Marigolds deter nematodes. Pot marigolds deter tomato horn worms and general garden pests. and for your information......I've planted potato's in a bushel basket, layering them in soil and leaves and at the end of the growth, just dumped the basket out and there were the spuds! LOL "There's a hole in my bucket dear Mad'e dear Mad'e There's a hole in my bucket dear mad'e a hole. Then Plant it dear.................. David Hill Abacus Nurseries Youre showing your age David... I remember that song! |
#5
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Upside-down Tomato Gardens
On 3 Apr, 02:02, Jack wrote:
ato growth. Marigolds deter nematodes. Pot marigolds deter tomato horn worms and general garden pests. and for your information......I've planted potato's in a bushel basket, layering them in soil and leaves and at the end of the growth, just dumped the basket out and there were the spuds! LOL "There's a hole in my bucket dear Mad'e dear Mad'e There's a hole in my bucket dear mad'e a hole. Then Plant it dear.................. David Hill Abacus Nurseries Youre showing your age David... After 3 days of clearing brambles, some with stems of over 20ft, I'm also feeling my age. So today I have managed to catch the chaps from BT and have ordered 12 telegraph poles, have also ordered a pallet of concrete blocks and a ton of sand so much for the wife's "Free glasshouse". The poles are for a shade structure for early chrysanths. David Hill Abacus Nurseries |
#6
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Upside-down Tomato Gardens
Dave Hill wrote:
On 3 Apr, 02:02, Jack wrote: ato growth. Marigolds deter nematodes. Pot marigolds deter tomato horn worms and general garden pests. and for your information......I've planted potato's in a bushel basket, layering them in soil and leaves and at the end of the growth, just dumped the basket out and there were the spuds! LOL "There's a hole in my bucket dear Mad'e dear Mad'e There's a hole in my bucket dear mad'e a hole. Then Plant it dear.................. David Hill Abacus Nurseries Youre showing your age David... After 3 days of clearing brambles, some with stems of over 20ft, I'm also feeling my age. So today I have managed to catch the chaps from BT and have ordered 12 telegraph poles, have also ordered a pallet of concrete blocks and a ton of sand so much for the wife's "Free glasshouse". The poles are for a shade structure for early chrysanths. David Hill Abacus Nurseries You cant be shifting all that by hand. Whats your secret? |
#7
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Upside-down Tomato Gardens
On 5 Apr, 14:45, Jack wrote:
Dave Hill wrote: On 3 Apr, 02:02, Jack wrote: ato growth. Marigolds deter nematodes. Pot marigolds deter tomato horn worms and general garden pests. and for your information......I've planted potato's in a bushel basket, layering them in soil and leaves and at the end of the growth, just dumped the basket out and there were the spuds! LOL "There's a hole in my bucket dear Mad'e dear Mad'e There's a hole in my bucket dear mad'e a hole. Then Plant it dear.................. David Hill Abacus Nurseries Youre showing your age David... After 3 days of clearing brambles, some with stems of over 20ft, I'm also feeling my age. So today I have managed to catch the chaps from BT and have ordered 12 telegraph poles, have also ordered a pallet of concrete blocks and a ton of sand so much for the wife's "Free glasshouse". The poles are for a shade structure for early chrysanths. David Hill Abacus Nurseries You cant be shifting all that by hand. Whats your secret? For shifting the poles the answer is rollers and shear legs with block and tackle, and just taking my time. It's amazing what you can shift with rollers, leavers etc, well it's worked for a couple of thousand years, David Hill Abacus Nurseries |
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