i am new to this site. i joined to get a plant identified,thank you agian L.Plant,and did within an hour.i just thought i would share what i have done.this will great for anyone who likes tomatoes and doesnt have room or want to take up yard space.i saw this done on a gardening show some time ago.i had a garden a couple times before and staking plants and fighting weeds and pests simply wore me out,plus i wanted that area to grow ornamentals and such.so i purchaced half gallon plastic paint bucket at local home improvement center and drilled 1 1/4 in holes in the bottom of them.make sure and get buckets with steel handles they will need the support.then i purched some 4 to 6 inch seedling tomatoes.in my case i got romas and beter 100 cherry tomatoes.now you must thread plant through hole.i wrapped plant with saran wrap so as not to harm stem or leaves while threading plant through holes.then simply back fill with dirt and hang as you would a hanging basket.these plants are a couple of months old and are bearing fruit and when they bear fruit stems will fall and looks quite wonderful.who would have thought a tomato plant can be a beautiful ornamental.best thing is pests cant get to them and staking isnt necessary and no weeding is necessary,woooorah.i hope yall have fun with this and next year i will try squash and cucumbers.that will be interesting. enjoy your gardens they can take away alot of worries toutlan,orlando florida
This method does have its advantages. [thread=13898]Here[/thread] is another thread on growing tomatoes upside-down.
I tried it last year, and it worked great too. The only thing I suggest is to get as big of a pot as you can for your application. I found I was watering mine everyday or several times a day. I think I had a 2 gallon bucket. But as you say, it is a really neat and effective way of growing tomatos.
just an update. i didnt see the fruit production i thought should be on the plants so far.i have gotten a couple of dozen cherrys and 1 about six romas. i have moved them to the south side of my house which gives them much more sun than east side.i am seeing quite a few flowers popping .will get more pics soon
just an update.cherries are doing ok,hard to say how many total,i eat them as soon as they are ripe,love them,lol..romas dont seem to be getting very big and some aren't maturing.the pots i used may be way too small.they use up water and fertilizer VERY fast.i started watering 3 times as often and doubled fertilizer.we will see.but i will say they are quite attractive plants.great conversation too.when it stops raining here i will put more pics of them.i am not counting out this method...yet,but it may be getting to be more of a pain than it worth.
the automatic drip system is the only way to go. You can set a timer for as many times a day as you like, and you control the water flow. There is one that you can also use to incorporate the fertilizer. You can go away and not worry, even if the power goes out as most of the timers have battery back ups.
i am realizing that is the way to do this.the only reason i did this ,well..it looked cool on tv,lol..,is that i love tomatoes and i didnt want to give up any yard to plant.plus, i have enough weeding and maintainence on my yard as it is.it boils down to...i spent a total of eight dollars so far and getting some fruit for my labor..lol,and i dont want to spend anymore.we are getting tons of rain here last several days and they are blooming quite well.so i will see.if i am pleased, i will go all out next year and incorporate drips. there is one draw back to massive tomato production for me,i eat them as fast as they get ripe and that causes acid build up and those of you that know...that is painful,but worth it...lol
