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General discussion regarding the techniques and methods used to successfully grow tomato plants in containers.

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Old April 7, 2013   #16
SharonRossy
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Just checking about sizing - I'm looking to order Smart Pots - is 20 gallons large enough for one tomato plant? I have a store near me that sells them, I hope or I am going to order through a catalog. Any recommendations?
Thanks Sharon
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Old April 8, 2013   #17
GoGayleGo
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I use 18-gallon totes, and plant two tomatoes/tote. So 20 gallons will be more than enough room for one, probably even overkill (some folks use the 5-gallon buckets for single tomato plants).
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Old April 8, 2013   #18
Crandrew
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I've grown tomatoes in 1gl bags, 3gl bags, 5 gal bags 8 gl pots 15 gl pots....

I would say that 5gl minimum with an ideal of 10-20. I dont see why you would need a 20, besides not having to water it as much.

Some of it is dependent on the variety and the environment.
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Old April 8, 2013   #19
tedln
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I usually grow two tomato or pepper plants in the same pot. I also usually grow herbs, cucumbers, flowers, and other things in the same pots. Usually it works fine, but the last two years, summers have been so hot and dry: my drip irrigation has had a hard time keeping enough water flowing. The smaller pots simply dry out between water cycles on my timer. Since the same timer services both my main garden and my containers, I can't just increase the cycle numbers or the time per cycle to meet the needs of small containers and raised beds at the same time. Next year, I will have separate timers for each. When the pepper plants and tomatoes are six feet tall and loaded with fruit, they require a lot of water. The larger pots, with drain holes drilled up the side of the pots; allow the bottom few inches of the pot to act as a water reservoir and the soil above the drain holes to only remain moist on the hottest days. They don't flood and they don't dry out.

Ted

Last edited by tedln; April 8, 2013 at 11:14 PM.
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Old April 11, 2013   #20
GoGayleGo
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Quote:
Originally Posted by GoGayleGo View Post
I use 18-gallon totes, and plant two tomatoes/tote. So 20 gallons will be more than enough room for one, probably even overkill (some folks use the 5-gallon buckets for single tomato plants).
I should have clarified that mine is a sub-irrigated system, and I have an automatic watering system hooked up to it. During the heat of last summer, I had the timer set to water 3X/day, for 2 minutes each time. That kept the reservoirs full.
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Old April 11, 2013   #21
tedln
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Quote:
Originally Posted by GoGayleGo View Post
I should have clarified that mine is a sub-irrigated system, and I have an automatic watering system hooked up to it. During the heat of last summer, I had the timer set to water 3X/day, for 2 minutes each time. That kept the reservoirs full.
And I am watering everything for six minutes, two times per day. Mid summer, I will increase it to three times per day. My system is regulated to water slowly so it is probably about equal to your two minutes per cycle. I have a pressure reducer on the system reducing water pressure to 25 psi. The soaker hoses have have flow discs in each to regulate flow for the bed size and amount of vegetation in the bed.

Ted
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Old April 11, 2013   #22
BucksCountyGirl
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I second the post about [URL="http://www.greenhousemegastore.com/product/large-nursery-container/nursery-containers"] I have purchased both the black container shown in the link and grow bags from them. Nice service/ turnaround time and the best pricing I could find.
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Old April 11, 2013   #23
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Quote:
Originally Posted by BucksCountyGirl View Post
I second the post about [URL="http://www.greenhousemegastore.com/product/large-nursery-container/nursery-containers"] I have purchased both the black container shown in the link and grow bags from them. Nice service/ turnaround time and the best pricing I could find.
I looked at the site for the first time and I believe the #25 pot purchased individually for $9.00 each or in groups of five for $43.00 is the same pot as my large pots. The price is very reasonable, but I have no idea what the shipping costs are.

Ted
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Old April 11, 2013   #24
BucksCountyGirl
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Ted, I happen to have my last order from them handy. I ordered a 4 cu foot bag of coarse vermiculite. They charged $13.00 for shipping (they are located in IL). It wasn't particularly heavy but it was in HUGE box, so I don't know if that makes a difference. Sorry I couldn't be more helpful!
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Old April 11, 2013   #25
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Zana provided a link to a home supply store in Canada which stocks the 17 1/2 gallon containers for livestock feed.

I checked tractor supply here in the states and they have almost the same container for $14.75 in my area.

http://www.tractorsupply.com/en/stor...capacity-black

I used them many years ago and they work great plus they also have the rope handles. They used to come on a variety of colors and they may still. They are stocked in the stores.

Ted
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Old April 12, 2013   #26
GoGayleGo
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Ted,

DH laughed at me when I showed him your earlier post and the price you paid...he wanted to know where you lived and said there was no way we'd find something like that here for $2...you are very lucky! I bought my 18-gallon totes at Target, on sale for $6.99 each.
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Old April 12, 2013   #27
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Quote:
Originally Posted by GoGayleGo View Post
Ted,

DH laughed at me when I showed him your earlier post and the price you paid...he wanted to know where you lived and said there was no way we'd find something like that here for $2...you are very lucky! I bought my 18-gallon totes at Target, on sale for $6.99 each.
I'm a pretty good customer of the farm store where I bought the containers. When I was looking for large containers, I asked the store owner for advise. He said he had a few of "Just what I was looking for". He described them to me and I asked how much he wanted for them. He said "how does two dollars each sound to you?". I think the only debate in his mind was between giving them to me or charging me some small amount. He knows me well enough that if he tried to give them to me, I probably wouldn't take them. I'm one of those old fashioned people who believes in paying your way or earning your way through life. It was a ridiculously low price, but after locating a vendor for them on the Internet; I realized they are not terribly expensive brand new.

Ted
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Old April 12, 2013   #28
ohiofem
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Default smart pots

I just want to give a thumbs up to smart pots. I've been using them for four years, 25 gallons with one tomato in each, and 15 to 20 gallons with three peppers, eggplants, cucumbers or okras in each. Big, heirloom beefsteak tomatoes can produce very well in 25 gallons. The smart pots are a little more expensive than the rope handle tubs from big box stores, which I have also used. But the smart pots look as good today as when I bought them and the tubs only lasted two seasons before cracking. And research has shown they keep the soil temperatures much cooler and the plants benefit from root pruning. You can get them from Amazon with free shipping. I just bought a 20 gallon for $14 and a pack of five 10-gallon ones for $44.
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Old April 12, 2013   #29
SharonRossy
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Thanks for all the info. I've ordered some 20 gallons from Amazon, not free cause I live in Canada. The Canadian Amazon has a grow bag like the Smart Pot, I have no idea if its the same quality, for $9.99 a bag. And I found a local source in Montreal. I'm going with one tomato plant per 20 gallon bag. Unless two dwarfs would work? But my sprinkler system couldn't handle it and I have to water my pots manually, so I think I will stick to one plant per pot.
Sharon
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Old April 12, 2013   #30
ohiofem
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If I had it to do over again, I would use a 20-gallon pot for each indeterminate tomato. When I first bought the smart pots, I was doing it to save money. I only bought three 25-gallon pots and put 3 hybrid plants in each one. When I switched to growing heirlooms, I discovered that they were bigger than the hybrids I had been growing and much more disease prone when crowded. So I came to the conclusion that it was better to grow only one per pot. Even with 25 gallons of potting mix, I have to water them every other day in the heat of summer.
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