tomato pot size.

[WatchMeShove]

SOrry that I am asking a rookie question here, but I usually plant my tomatoes in the ground. I would like to keep them in pots this year and want to plant them right from their small germination cells into the permanent pot. What pot size should be perfect?? I don't want to use huge pots because then I would be overusing soil but using too small a pot may restrict growth. Any help would be great. -Paul

[tedln]

SOrry that I am asking a rookie question here, but I usually plant my tomatoes in the ground. I would like to keep them in pots this year and want to plant them right from their small germination cells into the permanent pot. What pot size should be perfect?? I don't want to use huge pots because then I would be overusing soil but using too small a pot may restrict growth. Any help would be great. -Paul

When I gardened in containers, I always used 15 gallon containers. I would typically grow both tomatoes and cucumbers in the same pot with an herb thrown in for good measure.

When you plant the tiny plants in the large pots, it always looks like you have overestimated the needs of the plants. By the end of the growing season, I typically wished the pots were thirty gallon instead of fifteen.

The size of the pot is usually determined by the plant you wish to grow and the variety of the plant. Cherry tomatoes which maintain a small stature require smaller pots. Cherry tomatoes and regular tomatoes which grow large, require larger pots. It really isn't always about the plant. Sometimes with small pots, you need to water the plant twice per day and provide extra nutrients on a more frequent basis. A larger pot can be more forgiving, allowing you to actually leave town for a few days without worrying about the plant being dead when you get home.

It just depends on the plants needs and your needs.

Ted

[tn_veggie_gardner]

Yep, what Ted says...good answer. I'd use a minimum 5 gallon pot for any tomato plant. You may be able to get away with a 3 or 4 gallon pot for a cherry tomato/patio tomato type though.

[Duh_Vinci]

I agreed with what Ted said!

Indeed, different varieties would possibly require different sizes of containers. Compact Indeterminate, or large determinate varieties would probably do well in 10 gallon containers, Large Indeterminate - the larger the better, as the growth of the plant would be somewhat limited in the smaller containers, and I think 15+gal would be well suited.

Just an opinion, but 5gal I would use as a minimum, for a smaller, determinate/bush types.

And as Ted mentioned, smaller container - less forgiving it is in terms of feeding and watering the plants. So use the largest pots/containers you can afford to buy and maintain

Regards,
D

[Lupinus]

I'm using 18 gallon sized storage totes, as recommended on here one tomato plant per container.

Plenty of room for the roots, they are cheaper then pots (as low as 4 bucks if you catch them on sale), their size and shape make them easy to work in, and their shape I find more space efficient then round pots. As a bonus one 2 cu ft bag of potting mix per container fills them perfectly so measurement is easy.

[tedln]

A really good idea! Do you use the rubber or soft plastic totes. I use the clear plastic totes to cover fragile plants in the fall to protect against frost and this year, I am using them as seedling covers (cold frames) to protect my new tomato seedlings. The rubber or soft plastic seem to last the longest. The clear plastic ones seem to harden, become brittle, and break after they have been in the sun for awhile.

Ted

[Lupinus]

A really good idea! Do you use the rubber or soft plastic totes.

There are the exact ones I am using (bought single from a store, not bulk from the website) [url=https://www.walmart.com/ip/Sterilite-18-Gallon-Tote-Box-Set-of-8/10401037]Totes[/url]

Some did a get brittle after last year but most did just fine. At the price, and the temporary living space, three or four seasons will be fine by me.

[Duh_Vinci]

Funny you mentioned those Walmart containers, just finished "assembling a batch for the "surrogate" garden:


[img]https://drphotography.smugmug.com/Garden/2010-Garden/2010containers/826180821_YLuMU-XL.jpg[/img]

These are for earlies, will be sitting along the southside of the garage, that way in case of the frost, I can move them inside with minimal trouble. 18gal for compact indeterminate varieties and large determinate, 10gal for compact determinates...

What's there not to like, $3.50, silver color should prevent the "overheating"... Will try ti fill them up tomorrow and transplant the first batch!

Regards,
D

[tedln]

Very nice Duh_Vinci. I've been looking for some of those cages. All I can find are those square collapsible ones that start around $6.00 each. I like the old style cages because they just stack for winter storage.

Instead of the totes, I think I will take hendi-alex's lead and construct some planter boxes out of a stack of old decking wood I have. He posted a photo of one he made today. Like his wood, mine is also pressure treated, so I will need to line the inside in order to grow edible food in them.

You need to educate me a little. Define "surrogate" garden. Does it mean "as opposed to planting in the ground?

Happy Gardening

Ted

[Duh_Vinci]

That "surrogate" garden - yeah, let's just say that I overshot my available garden space by about 10 varieties. My parents asked me to grow some smaller/medium size tomatoes for them for pickling, so I started the seeds, but forgot to add them to the total numbers. So this part of the garden was not planned at all. But since the earlies I have are mostly compact plants, I think containers would be a good way to go...

As for the wood - I wish I had some spare, unfortunately almost nothing. Enough to build me a few 2x2 boxes for later in the season, but that's about it. Plastic fantastic...

Cages - in our area, Walmart carries them, always in stock. Those are cheapies though. But what I've done in the past - 1/2" ten foot conduit pole, cut in half, driven into the ground and ziptied to the cages - makes them survive just fine. Lowe's carries "heavy duty" type, much sturdier, but pricier too.

Regards,
D

[SarahSarah]

Duh Vinci - What kind of drainage do you put in those? I'm thinking about doing something similar.

[Lupinus]

Awesome Duh_Vinci!

Am I correct from looking at the picture you have bent the legs out so that they go to the corners/edges of the containers? I was thinking on how to make them a bit more stable and that's perfect.

Having a why didn't I think of that moment

[Duh_Vinci]

Sarah - nothing special, just drilled few holes at the bottom of the tubs. These are sitting on the top of slightly elevated gravel strip, so there should be no standing water at all.

Lupinus - lol... Believe me, one day, I was coming from work, and thinking of so many different ways to attach these cages, some complicated, some very complicated - but at the end, all time consuming. Until one night, when I just dropped one cage inside the tube, suddenly the light bulb went out!

Legs are also secured to the tubs with heavy duty zipties (2 small holes drilled at each peg location to loop them through). Sturdy enough, specially now filled with soil mix...

And on those tubs - color does make a difference! It was unseasonably hot today, tubs were barely warm to touch all day.

Regards,
D

[Lupinus]

Yeah that's one of the things that did work out well last year. With the sun beating down the soil got warm, but no too warm.

Do you put yours directly on the ground? I've got mine set up with the lids turned upside down on the ground, two or three bricks, and then the tub sat on top of the bricks. Reading around the google results several articles claimed better drainage and better pest resistance. Seemed to make sense so I'm giving it a shot. For .33 cents a brick it's minimal investment for something that can't hurt.

[tedln]

When I grew in containers, I grew in 15 gal round tubs. They were kind of a hard plastic with a lip around the upper edge. I would bend the tip of the legs of the cages up a little to keep them from poking through the pot. I would spread the legs out to hit the bottom of the pot at the sides. I would drill four holes around the lip of the tub 90 degrees apart. I would then wire the cages from the upper ring into each hole securing the wire under the lip with a large washer. It worked for me because the wire gave the cucumbers on the edge of the pot something to climb up without impeding the growth of the tomatoes in the center. I would typically invert the first cage so the largest ring was at the top. I then would place another cage on top of the first, large ring to large ring, wired together. My cages would be about eight feet tall. My tomatoes usually grew out the top of the cages by fall.

Ted

[Bud]

I just got a small green house. I plan to plant tomatoes in pots in the ground and transfer them to the green house late in the year. I plan to use 3 gal containers. Sounds like most people are using larger ones. I'll find out if that is too small.

[WatchMeShove]

I was planning on using 5 gal. containers for my tomatoes, but now I'm coming to the conclusion that they are going to be way to small. It seems like the three gallon would be too small, especially when you have a tomato plant that could reach 5-6ft. in height. The storage tote idea is a great idea, they are cheaper than buying garden containers and are large enough to house large plants. Thank you all for your help!!