2009 Tomatoes: What are you growing in containers?

[amideutch]

Ah, Ray's getting even after I spilled the beans about the local cats making visits to his "Tainers" at night. That's alright as Ray and I don't mind sharing our gardening practices whether they be orthodox or unorthodox as long as they get the job done. Ami

[newatthiskat]

I guess you can't get more organic than that!
Kat

[gssgarden]

Ami, I'm sure I won't be disappointed. They are near the top of my 'must grow' list so to make sure I get a 'great number' of them, I'm growing them both in my raised beds and pots.

Shannon's - is my fav and I'm growing it to compare taste. Just to see if flavor is different.
KBX - I fell in love with this one after the first bite. Just need more but I have no more room in the beds.
TYW - Will be in both bed and pot. Same as KBX, just want more. Last year she had disease and produced limited fruit.

BTW, showed my wife pics of your plants. She was amazed how great they looked in pots. 'Better than yours in the garden' she said. We've since gotton divorced !

Greg

[gssgarden]

Oh yeah, in the third picture, what is the name of that beast on the right?

Thanks

Greg

[montanamato]

I plant in containers from 3-10 gallons and grow bags too. I usually grow dwarfs and a few of the same ones from my garden that I really need seed for or want to try...My containers are protected from hail and wind and animal/insect invasions that can plague the main garden...I also plant several small fruited salad types so that when making meals they are right outside the door, and I need not go out to the main garden...Also, after the main plant out, anything left over usually gets stuffed in a grow bag...Not very scientific but it works...I water at least daily and in hot, windy periods twice daily...Usually very little or no BER...I mix tomato tone in most containers( Michael shared that several years back). I usually have about 20 tomato containers a year, along with a few pepper , eggpant and okra...Mixed among pots of flowers I love the looks of a mostly edible patio arrangement...
This years current choices for containers :

Epoch
Calypso
Condine
*Moira
Porter
*Lime Green Salad
*Polish Dwarf
*Aurora
Rozovaya Stella
Russkaya Troyka
*Angora
Fablonelystynij
Grushovka
*Orange 1
Zolotaya Pulya
506 Dwarf Bush
*Early Annie

*grown before and coming back for good reasons....

Others that have been outstanding container plants in the past include: Alpatieva 905A, Japanese Dwarf, Marizol Magic, Concrete Red, Maremmano, Dina, Dubok, Sixth Ave., Lazy Man, Ditmarsher, Demidov, Siberian Pink, Resista, Red Bob's and Dakota Gold.

Jeanne

[hasshoes]

Ami- I'm so glad you posted on this because I've been admiring your huge plants in smaller pots for awhile. . . and I'm dying to ask. . . what do you put in them?

I'd really like to try it myself, at least as an experiment here. . . if you tell me your secret I promise not to hold you responsible when I kill them.

[amideutch]

Greg, the beast on the right in the corner is "Ludmilla's Red Plum" and it would NOT stop pumping out the maters. Had two of them growing in containers and both were kick butt tomato producers with good disease resistance. If interested send me a PM.
Hasshoes,
As a aggregate base I use a commercial Rhododendron grow mix because it's a light, airy mix if you will with the least amount of ferts (lowest NPK) of all the planting mixes sold here in Germany. Why you say, because I use Mycorrhiza which doe's not tolerate high levels of phosphorus. So this way I can control the ferts my plants get without having to worry as I know what I have at the get go. When I make a batch of growing medium I use the Rhododendron mix, add about 15% perlite, some micro's that are mined from one of two extinct volcanoes here in Germany (It's called the Emperor's Chair) and when I plant my seedlings I add Mycorrhiza for growth and Actinovate which is a Bio-fungicide which can be used to protect the plant from soil borne disease and also can be applied as a foliar spray to protect the plant from airborne diseases.
During the course of the growing season I apply bio ferts weekly to the plants when watering and also make periodic foliar applications of Actinovate and microbe tea and this past year I used Spray-N-Grow and Bills perfect fertilizer as a foliar application as well. So now my secrets out. Ami

[newatthiskat]

I figured eventually with some tourture we could get some of you secrets Ami
Kat

[Moonglow]

Ami - Thanks for the potting recipe!

Ray - Well, I do not have cats, but I have two (2) male Golden Retrievers: Will they take care of the pet factor and male participation combo?

Kat - My honey has continued to be a happy volunteer driving me to nurseries, installing drip irrigation system for my plants, and best of all funding my obsession.

George - Sounds like a covert operation .

Greg - That's one happy dancing smiley.

Jeanne - My "Lime Green Salad" is still blooming. Nothing is setting though. It's a very pretty compact plant that I wish to grow again.

Heather - Let's do go for the not-so-giant containers!

Here's my list:

1. Amish Paste*
2. Ananas Noire
3. Aunt Ruby’s German Green*
4. Black
5. Black Cherry
6. Black Krim
7. Black Prince
8. Black Zebra - TGS
9. Box Car Willie*
10. Carbon
11. Cherokee Chocolate - TGS
12. Cherokee Purple*
13. Chocolate Cherry
14. Climbing Trip-L-Crop*
15. Copia - TGS
16. Cuore Di Bue
17. Dixie Golden Giant - TGS
18. Giant Belgium*
19. Gold Dust
20. Green Zebra
21. Japanese Trifele
22. Kellog's Breakfast - TGS
23. Matina
24. Momotaro
25. Mortgage Lifter*
26. Northern Lights
27. Nyagous - TGS
28. Opalka Paste*
29. Paul Robeson - TGS
30. Persimmon
31. Pineapple
32. Purple Calabash
33. Sprite - TGS (Free)
34. Yellow Brandywine, Platfoot Strain

* - Are from my friend Joyce (DG)

The plants I ordered (1 each variety) are coming from Laurel's.

Some plants are Christmas presents from Territorial Seeds Co.

With luck, I should be able to share some seedlings from the seeds I am starting.



Annapet

[geeboss]

Moonglow
This small statured man wearing a dark trenchcoat came up and said that you could only do it in the rain. Honest.....only in the rain said he.

George

I blame Ray......

[MikeInCypress]

I will be growing around 48 varieties in containers this year. Most are 2 plants per 10 gal. home made earthbox. Ihave had great luck with BrandyBoy, Aunt Ginny's Purple, Burracker's Favorite, JD's C-Tex, and Brandywine OTV. I try to pair a large plant with a dwarf or a determinate or bush variety. Water them once a day until it gets over 95 then twice a day until the crop is done. Good luck.

MikeInCypress

[hasshoes]

Thank you Ami!

I totally can't wait to try it.

[Moonglow]

Originally Posted by geeboss

Moonglow
This small statured man wearing a dark trenchcoat came up and said the you could only do it in the rain. Honest.....only in the rain said he.

George

I blame Ray......

George - X-Files Tomatoville Episode.
Mike - Luckily, the average high here is 84F . Thanks for the well-wishes!

The seeds I have started are now posted on Kat's Thread. Woo-hoo!

[Moonglow]

I have gardening friends (DG) who have started using Coco Coir in their EBs and other containers. I plan on trying Coco Coir in spring.

Day 7 after seed planting, germination is at 80%.

[Dukerdawg]

I grow quite a bit in containers. Usually around 24-28 pepper plants in my 8x16 greenhouse. It is set up on a hard rock gravel surface so container growing is the only option there. Last year I experimented with grow-bags and they were about a 95 percent success. I did have some BER but it wasn't bad, mostly early in the season. Container growing is a great option for those of us who don't have a huge garden area. It tends to get a little expensive with the growing medium, and I have found Miracle Grow potting mix is superior to everything else I've tried, but it is $$$ so I usually mix it in with something a little cheaper. I would love to have some Earthtainers, but at the price to build I think I could afford a down payment on a small farm here! (my dream, if not my wife's!)

Duane