Had to move my earthboxes..

Balr14 · August 4, 2014

It was pretty much a disaster! In order to move them, I had to separate the plants from each other and prune the hell out them to get them to fit in a truck with a 6 1/2' roof. Then we had to empty as much water as possible from the reservoirs. About half of the tomatoes fell off in the 20 mile trip. Finally, after getting them setup, in their new home, the tomato towers were not adequate to support the weight of 6 containers so the plants collapsed. Major damage and lots of cutting to fix. The last straw was the 50 year old water pump quit. My containers has no water for 4 days.

After all of this, the plants are producing no new growth and are looking very sickly. There's not much I can do to help them right now, either; far too many other moving issues to deal with. Lots of tomatoes getting ripe and I don't have the means to use them; no kitchen!

FYI - we moved into a 60 year old house and have gutted most everything. We have a working bathroom with a shower, a 75% finished living room and a 40% finished bedroom.

peppero · August 5, 2014

Life can present some real challenges. I hope things work out for you.

jon

Ed of Somis · August 5, 2014

It sounds like you have bigger fish to fry than growing tomatoes....

Balr14 · August 5, 2014

I'd post some pictures if I could find my camera.

JamesL · August 6, 2014

I remember you mentioning a move in your other thread and wondering how you were going to pull that off! Just hand out tomatoes to all the new neighbors.
Working bathroom- you are all set!

Balr14 · August 7, 2014

While my growing season appears that it will be very short this year, the tomatoes that had already set are getting very large and are ripening. On Tuesday, I picked about a dozen large tomatoes and a hundred cherries. But, I have no place to store them and no way to use them. So, I have been giving them away.

Worth1 · August 7, 2014

Quote:

Originally Posted by Balr14

While my growing season appears that it will be very short this year, the tomatoes that had already set are getting very large and are ripening. On Tuesday, I picked about a dozen large tomatoes and a hundred cherries. But, I have no place to store them and no way to use them. So, I have been giving them away.

I think I could eat 12 large tomatoes and 100 cherry tomatoes in about 2 days.

Worth

Balr14 · September 17, 2014

Here's an update:

Tomato season is over this year for me. The plants looked awful and died off early. The general circumstances just were not good. Despite all of the problems, I got a lot of tomatoes, especially larger ones. I have come to the conclusion I don't need that many tomatoes, so next year I'm only putting two plants per container. I'm going to have to come up with a new way to support them, too.

Sun City Linda · September 17, 2014

If your growing in Earthboxes, the recommendation is for two plants per box.

ginger2778 · September 17, 2014

Beat me to it Linda. So +1 on that post.

Tracydr · September 17, 2014

Quote:

Originally Posted by Balr14

It was pretty much a disaster! In order to move them, I had to separate the plants from each other and prune the hell out them to get them to fit in a truck with a 6 1/2' roof. Then we had to empty as much water as possible from the reservoirs. About half of the tomatoes fell off in the 20 mile trip. Finally, after getting them setup, in their new home, the tomato towers were not adequate to support the weight of 6 containers so the plants collapsed. Major damage and lots of cutting to fix. The last straw was the 50 year old water pump quit. My containers has no water for 4 days.

After all of this, the plants are producing no new growth and are looking very sickly. There's not much I can do to help them right now, either; far too many other moving issues to deal with. Lots of tomatoes getting ripe and I don't have the means to use them; no kitchen!

FYI - we moved into a 60 year old house and have gutted most everything. We have a working bathroom with a shower, a 75% finished living room and a 40% finished bedroom.

I feel for you. We moved in July with a horse, two dogs, three cats, two moving vans with car trailers, the dually and horse trailer. Had the horse and hubby's motorcycle, all the cats in the trailer. Dogs rode in the truck's back seat.
It was a 5 day, 2,600 mile trip. Longest move or drive I've ever been on and I've moved a lot!
House had been empty for 3 years so everything decided to break within a week. Dishwasher, trash compactor, AC, microwave, hot water heater. Luckily, the seller paid for a lot of the repairs.

August 4, 2014	#1
Balr14 Tomatovillian™ Join Date: May 2013 Location: wisconsin Posts: 135	Had to move my earthboxes.. It was pretty much a disaster! In order to move them, I had to separate the plants from each other and prune the hell out them to get them to fit in a truck with a 6 1/2' roof. Then we had to empty as much water as possible from the reservoirs. About half of the tomatoes fell off in the 20 mile trip. Finally, after getting them setup, in their new home, the tomato towers were not adequate to support the weight of 6 containers so the plants collapsed. Major damage and lots of cutting to fix. The last straw was the 50 year old water pump quit. My containers has no water for 4 days. After all of this, the plants are producing no new growth and are looking very sickly. There's not much I can do to help them right now, either; far too many other moving issues to deal with. Lots of tomatoes getting ripe and I don't have the means to use them; no kitchen! FYI - we moved into a 60 year old house and have gutted most everything. We have a working bathroom with a shower, a 75% finished living room and a 40% finished bedroom. Last edited by Balr14; August 4, 2014 at 03:42 PM.

August 5, 2014	#2
peppero Tomatovillian™ Join Date: Jan 2009 Location: selmer, tn Posts: 2,944	Life can present some real challenges. I hope things work out for you. jon

August 5, 2014	#3
Ed of Somis Tomatovillian™ Join Date: Jun 2013 Location: Somis, Ca Posts: 649	It sounds like you have bigger fish to fry than growing tomatoes....

August 6, 2014	#5
JamesL Tomatovillian™ Join Date: Nov 2011 Location: Long Island NY Posts: 1,992	I remember you mentioning a move in your other thread and wondering how you were going to pull that off! Just hand out tomatoes to all the new neighbors. Working bathroom- you are all set!

August 7, 2014	#6
Balr14 Tomatovillian™ Join Date: May 2013 Location: wisconsin Posts: 135	While my growing season appears that it will be very short this year, the tomatoes that had already set are getting very large and are ripening. On Tuesday, I picked about a dozen large tomatoes and a hundred cherries. But, I have no place to store them and no way to use them. So, I have been giving them away.

September 17, 2014	#8
Balr14 Tomatovillian™ Join Date: May 2013 Location: wisconsin Posts: 135	Here's an update: Tomato season is over this year for me. The plants looked awful and died off early. The general circumstances just were not good. Despite all of the problems, I got a lot of tomatoes, especially larger ones. I have come to the conclusion I don't need that many tomatoes, so next year I'm only putting two plants per container. I'm going to have to come up with a new way to support them, too.

September 17, 2014	#9
Sun City Linda Tomatovillian™ Join Date: Mar 2011 Location: SoCal Inland Posts: 2,705	If your growing in Earthboxes, the recommendation is for two plants per box.

September 17, 2014	#10
ginger2778 Tomatovillian™ Join Date: Aug 2011 Location: Plantation, Florida zone 10 Posts: 9,283	Beat me to it Linda. So +1 on that post.