[MrsJustice]

Originally Posted by Greatgardens

I'm a hobby gardener -- so I'm not really interested in how many pounds of tomatoes I can get per square foot or per unit of inputs. It's a hobby, and I'm older, so I want it easy! I've been growing in containers for about 20 years. I got started with containers because I have Verticillium in my garden soil, and could not grow eggplants reliably. But then I moved on to growing tomatoes in them. My first containers were about 15-gallon totes with holes drilled in the bottoms of the side walls for drainage. Worked OK for several years.

Then after pooh-poohing EarthBoxes, I tried a couple. Wow, what an improvement over my totes! Smaller, much more durable (against UV degradation), and with a nice reservoir so that I didn't need to a) have a huge container, or b) keep watering all the time due to a small container. I definitely recommend you try one or two. For me, I can grow 2 dwarfs or (crowding) 2 determinates. I have grown two indeterminates, but I find that for most varieties, one ind. works better. I water no more than once a day -- and much of the season once every two days -- or less.

There are of course, knock-offs. Tried one, and found it had poor construction. And do avoid the "EB Junior" model -- they are not really suitable for most tomatoes. I now have 9 of the original EarthBoxes (many have far more boxes than me). I am also experimenting with grow-bags, but they get back to the watering issue -- or my plants suffer from BER. I have not found it practical to set up a drip system. Drip irrigation would solve most of the issues of small containers. But having said that, a 10-15 gallon grow-bag works pretty well for most varieties.

www.Earthbox.com

So sorry to hear about your soil suffering from Verticillium! Amen!!

If I was you: I would try to correct your soil as Verticillium wilts often have the same symptoms of Fusarium wilts. To me, it's like the Covid of the soil. My research shows it can survive up to 15 years. Even the Cold cannot kill it. "Verticillium can survive cold weather and winters much better than Fusarium, which prefers warmer climates". The resting structures of Verticillium are able to survive freezing, thawing, heat shock, dehydration, and many other factors and are quite robust and difficult to get rid of. ""Please talk to native Americans to get the secrets of destroying this fungus" as can't tolerate extended periods of anaerobic conditions such as during flooding.


Show me a picture of the planting pots you usese.