Raybo's InnTainer 2011/12 Winter Indoor Tomato Project - Year #2 (pics)

[rnewste]

After making a few mistakes last year, but learning a lot in the process, I have now set up my Winter tomato "Farm" for Year #2. One of the key things I learned was that you should not grow "normal" varieties like Goose Creek, Indian Stripe, Brandywine, etc. indoors. They can go crazy!



So this year, I have selected smaller bush varieties as well as 2 from the Dwarf Project.

The basic setup consists of six 18 gallon InnTainers mounted on two movable racks:



The downloadable (free) InnTainer Construction Guide can be found at this link:

http://earthtainer.tomatofest.com/pd...tion-Guide.pdf

For the indoor Grow Media, I am using Sunshine #4 Mix, Turf-Topper, and Perlite in a 6:2:1 ratio. Turf-Topper is in essence Bark Fines:



The Grow Media is supplemented with the following:

1-1/2 Cups Dolomite Lime
1/2 Cup Calcium Nitrate (the Snack)
1/4 Cup Epsom Salts
1/4 Cup Actino-Iron

Fertilization is 1-1/2 Cups Tomato-tone placed in a trench centered in the InnTainer.

I have selected the Farm's location to get a good amount of natural sunlight from a South facing window.

But this lighting is insufficient during the Winter, so I am supplementing this with a High Pressure Sodium lighting system consisting of a HydroFarms reflector, and a 400W lamp which I run from 5:00pm until 8:00pm:



I'm using an energy efficient Lumatek Digital Ballast unit:



And have the power setting at 250 Watts, which seems to produce ample illumination. The Digital Ballast runs so cool that you can touch it and it is barely warm:



The bulb is also a high efficiency type with a wide frequency spectrum, targeted to those growing "cash crops". Tomatoes and Peppers it seems, also fit into this sweet spot:



I am growing 9 Parks Rainbow bell peppers in one InnTainer, not expecting any Winter production, but as I didn't get ripe Peppers this past Season until late August, I wanted the plants to get a jump-start, hopefully getting them in the ground outside in April, with ripe fruit in June.



My InnTainer Winter tomato grow list contains the following varieties:

Demidov - Compact determinate, medium size pink fruits, sometimes with yellow shoulders, round oblate shape, very early, excellent flavor. Excellent yield of great tasting 3-3.5" beautiful pink fruit. 74 DTM, regular leaf rugose dwarf plant to 3', Very good production of relatively large, pink fruit for a dwarf plant.

Extreme Bush - 50 days, determinate. Plants are twelve to twenty eight inches tall, tremendously productive, and produce fruit over a long period of time. The leaves interestingly curl up and inward. The fruits are very flavorful, weigh about three ounces, are globe-shaped and red in color.

Iditarod Red – (Dwarf Project) Early to mid season. Regular leaf, dark green rugose foliage, stout central stem, grows to 3 feet tall. Fruit are smooth and round, with some showing a nippled blossom end, ranging from 3-4 ounces, and ripen to red (the color of Nepal or Aker's West Virginia). Flavor is well balanced and pleasant.

Mano - Determinate, compact plant with rugose regular foliage, very productive. Small round red fruits, excellent strong acidic taste with a hint of sweetness. 77 days, compact dwarf 18-24" tall plants, good production of 2-3 oz red fruit.

Mountain Princess - 69 days, det., compact regular leaf plant with high yield of medium red fruit, 3-6 oz, very good flavor.

Rosella Purple – (Dwarf Project) Similar to Cherokee Purple in color, size, shape and flavor but on a dwarf growing plant. Regular leaf, dark green rugose foliage, stout central stem, grows to three to four feet in height. The fruits are oblate, ranging from six to twelve ounces, and ripen to a deep purple-pink color. Flavor is full, intense, balanced and delicious. 'Rosella Purple' originated from a cross between 'Budai' (a small red fruited dwarf) and 'Stump of the World',

Rozovyi Flamingo - Rozovyi means pink in Russian. The plants were grown in gallon pots and were dwarf growing only a couple feet high. They probably will be a bit larger grown in the ground. The fruit are an elongated globe shape and a light pink, very pink as tomatoes go so the name is fitting.

Sophies Choice - Very early, rivals Stupice for how early it produces in my garden. Regular leafed determinate plant, very small (maximum of 2' in height) doesn't require staking. Red globular fruit, about 3" in diameter with good (although a little bit mild) flavor, excellent for containers.

Stakeless - Foliage is green and fruit is red, round and weighs 8 ounces. 2 to 4 ft. Determinate, 78 days Compact dwarf plant. Medium large fruit about 8 oz. Plants get 18 - 24 in. Very much like 'Patio', but the tomato may be a bit larger.

Victorian Dwarf - 65 days, bush habit, excellent production of good tasting 3" slightly flat red fruit.


So, the growth habits of the plants I've selected this year should be more compatible to the indoor growing environment. I'll update progress over the Winter and I'm sure to discover some new improvements to make next year as well.

Raybo