Just showing off. - Page 16

CarolynPhillips · March 26, 2014

Quote:

Originally Posted by CarolynPhillips

I had a problem finding an Organic Nitrogen source locally that was non-gmo that starts working right away.
Since I had to order an organic nitrogen, I bought Pumpkin Power 9-3-4 OMRI slow release. It slow releases up to 3 months. 3 months during cooler weather and much less time during warm to hot weather. I plan to use it monthly. I like it. It has a light fish emulsion aroma and has kelp but once you mix it into the soil, you can't smell it.

I am growing 6 to 8 Single vine tomato plants in 20 gallons of soil (25 gallon pot). I left space for mulching.
The soil is 1/2 pro-mix and 1/2 commercial compost.
To the 20 gallons of soil, I added::
2 cups of dolomite lime
1 cup of Azomite
1 cup of Bonemeal
1 cup of Gypsum
1 cup of Pumpkin Power 9-3-4
I've been watering with baby fish nutrient water. The nitrogen isn't very strong right now.
I added a small handfull of worms to each 25 gallon pot the other day. Not sure how that will work out yet.

The plants are starting to bloom now. Lots of megablooms from the beefsteak varieties.
Growing in the 25 gallon pots = Big Beef Hybrid, Big Beef OP, Brandywine, Sweet Million Cherry, Steakhouse (new from burpee) Beefsteak, 1884, Cherokee Purple, Pineapple, Beefmaster, Artisan Purple Bumble Bee, Indigo Rose, Omar's Labanese, Caspian.
Growing Illdi, Big Zac, Bush Beefsteak and a few others in 5 gallon pots/grow bags using same fertilizer formula.
should be an interesting spring/summer.

I'm also going to grow 6 single vine Big Beef OP in earthboxes. I have 10 earthboxes. I will add to the soil of just Pro-mix
1 cup of Lime
1/2 cup Azomite
1/2 cup Bone meal
1/2 cup gypsum
3 cups of Pumpkin Power 9-3-4 as my fert. strip.

pics of 25 gallon pots of toms .. single vines.

newgardener_tx · March 26, 2014

Just seeing the pictures and reading your post already make my morning so beautiful, not thinking of any other chaos I have to deal with.
When you attach second cage on top of the first one of a 4 gallon pot, will it be easily tipped over especially when it is loaded with fruits? My plants used to grow to 8 to 10 ft with Texas tomato cage but I found the plants rarely set fruit after 5 ft for the big tomato type, maybe I didn't give it enough nutrient. How many lbs of tomato you can harvest averagely from a plant grew in a 4 gallon? I have to admit I already read your whole posts 4 times but I may still miss some important information

. Lots of questions keep coming.
Wendy from TX

ReginaAnn · March 26, 2014

Carolyn,

Love this thread. Thanks continuing to update it!

Growing some tomatoes in 5 gallon buckets this year with the rain gutter watering method and am very encouraged by your crop in the 4 gallons. If I am even close it will be a major success.

Thanks again for being so generous with your time and information.

CarolynPhillips · March 27, 2014

Wendy, I only use cages around the 25 gallon pots. I use twine tied to an over head support system with the tomatoes that grow in 4 and 5 gallon pots
Production does slow down when they reach about 5 to 6ft and loaded with fruits that have to ripen. Production picks up again after you start harvesting unless you have the same luck as me and some kind of fungus from the humid summer destroys the plants before they can get any bigger. :/

Regina, I like the idea of the rain gutter grow system and I was going to try it until I figured the math to see how much water the gutter holds compared to how much I would have to water them manually. It's only going to save time If I put in the automatic float valve in the gutter system. Watering manually will take the same amount of time as it would to fill the gutter manually each day for fully mature plants. I'm still thinking about it.
Hope you have fun and success with your gutter grow system.

Fiishergurl · April 3, 2014

Hi Carolyn,

Would you mind posting the brand/type of gypsum and bonemeal you use in the earthboxes? Are you putting a handful of worms in the earthboxes and/or supplementing with worm tea?

Love love love what you are doing and the results you are getting.

Ginny

suvoth · April 4, 2014

Thought I'd share since this is a show off thread

My first time newbie seedlings

2 weeks old.

tammyinwv · April 9, 2014

Carolyn are you still using the Mittlieder method for fertilizing?
Tammy

nolabelle · April 11, 2014

suvoth, congratulations on your new seedlings. They look great from here! I'm fairly new to this and not confident enough to begin with seeds. I'll get a couple of starters from the nursery instead. Keep up the good work!

Growing Giants · April 14, 2014

Have you ever considered doing a Gordon Graham. Gordon feed high nitrogen to his plant until it had reached several feet and blew over in a storm. He left it laying on his cantaloupe to shade them and the plant continued to grow longer and also a megabloom formed and a giant world record was born.

suvoth · April 14, 2014

Quote:

Originally Posted by nolabelle

suvoth, congratulations on your new seedlings. They look great from here! I'm fairly new to this and not confident enough to begin with seeds. I'll get a couple of starters from the nursery instead. Keep up the good work!

Thanks They are beasts now..barely containable! lol Here's an update at 25 days since sowing the seeds (so 3.5 weeks approx). Peppers are doing exceptionally well too so happy

Hmm..can't get image to work.one sec

suvoth · April 15, 2014

I think I may have "Hijacked" this thread. I'm sorry!

CarolynPhillips · April 17, 2014

suvoth,
you have not hijacked the thread. Post away. This just happens to be the busiest time of the year for me selling plants (greenhouse business) and rarely find a moment to post updates.

tammy,
I am still going to use mittleider magic mix on container gardening. I will never have enough organic source for the container gardening that I do. I just wanted to try the organic method in the 25 gallon pots to see how they do. They are doing good but they need 2/3 more of the organic slow release because it's not as high in nitrogen as the 13-13-13 and just like the 13-13-13 in the mittleider mix, some nutrients wash out with the top watering.
The 9-3-4 organic slow release in additon to the dolomite lime that I am using would do great in an earthbox or anything with water reservoir much better than "run to waste" but as I have seen on the net and agree with, You still have to add another dose of the organic fertilizer about mid season in the containers with water reservoirs.
I also think it's best to add Bone meal or anything high in phosphorus into the soil for bigger better fruits rather it be organic or chemical fertilizer added.

Due to finances, I will have to use mittleider fertilizer mix in containers along with some organic amendments and use the 9-3-4 slow release organic in the Garden soil.

Three plants on the right never got another dose of slow release fertilizer....assuming....cause they are lighter green. Must of got skipped.

also growing some Big Beef Open Pollinated in the greenhouse grow bed using the same organic amendments and organic slow release fertilizer plus rabbit manure in the grow beds.

CarolynPhillips · April 17, 2014

Phil, I have thought about the Grahams accident of growing his giant tomato. I agree that there should be a lot of plant behind the fruit just like growing a giant pumpkin. I just haven't tried it yet but working on it. I read his story in the Growing Giant Tomatoes

CarolynPhillips · April 17, 2014

Off topic====Peppers
I am growing these peppers in 5 gallon grow bags with organic amendments and organic slow release fertilizer on a water reservoir.. They are doing great but have a few issues. The net pot that sits in the water reservoir isn't long enough to reach the bottom of the reservoir. My soil isn't wicking up water correctly or its because the net pot isn't long enough cause I have to water the plants from the top sometimes. I was going to grow them in the greenhouse with the water reservoir all year but Changed My Mind. I know----I'm a dork. LOL. I checked to see how the roots were doing in the net pots. There isn't a lot of root growth out the bottom yet but enough that it will put them in a little shock if I transplanted them alllllllll to a larger pot and watered manually. I'm going to do it anyway...shock or no shock. It's now or never before the roots get too long into the water reservoir. They will be transplanted into half barrel raised planters. The half barrels don't have a bottom and is just sitting on the ground so the roots can dig into the earth easily.

Growing Giants · April 20, 2014

Nice greenhouse! Was it a government project? Any problems with the house or things you would do different as I am starting to build in May!

March 26, 2014	#227
newgardener_tx Tomatovillian™ Join Date: Feb 2009 Location: austin, tx Posts: 249	Just seeing the pictures and reading your post already make my morning so beautiful, not thinking of any other chaos I have to deal with. When you attach second cage on top of the first one of a 4 gallon pot, will it be easily tipped over especially when it is loaded with fruits? My plants used to grow to 8 to 10 ft with Texas tomato cage but I found the plants rarely set fruit after 5 ft for the big tomato type, maybe I didn't give it enough nutrient. How many lbs of tomato you can harvest averagely from a plant grew in a 4 gallon? I have to admit I already read your whole posts 4 times but I may still miss some important information. Lots of questions keep coming. Wendy from TX

March 27, 2014	#229
CarolynPhillips Tomatovillian™ Join Date: Oct 2010 Location: Nauvoo, Alabama Posts: 184	Wendy, I only use cages around the 25 gallon pots. I use twine tied to an over head support system with the tomatoes that grow in 4 and 5 gallon pots Production does slow down when they reach about 5 to 6ft and loaded with fruits that have to ripen. Production picks up again after you start harvesting unless you have the same luck as me and some kind of fungus from the humid summer destroys the plants before they can get any bigger. :/ Regina, I like the idea of the rain gutter grow system and I was going to try it until I figured the math to see how much water the gutter holds compared to how much I would have to water them manually. It's only going to save time If I put in the automatic float valve in the gutter system. Watering manually will take the same amount of time as it would to fill the gutter manually each day for fully mature plants. I'm still thinking about it. Hope you have fun and success with your gutter grow system. __________________ Happy Gardening Carolyn

April 3, 2014	#230
Fiishergurl Tomatovillian™ Join Date: Mar 2014 Location: Oak Hill, Florida Posts: 1,781	Hi Carolyn, Would you mind posting the brand/type of gypsum and bonemeal you use in the earthboxes? Are you putting a handful of worms in the earthboxes and/or supplementing with worm tea? Love love love what you are doing and the results you are getting. Ginny Last edited by Fiishergurl; April 3, 2014 at 05:16 PM.

April 11, 2014	#233
nolabelle Tomatovillian™ Join Date: Jun 2013 Location: N.O., LA (Zone 8b) Posts: 136	suvoth, congratulations on your new seedlings. They look great from here! I'm fairly new to this and not confident enough to begin with seeds. I'll get a couple of starters from the nursery instead. Keep up the good work! __________________ I don't suffer from insanity; I enjoy every minute of it!

April 14, 2014	#234
Growing Giants Tomatovillian™ Join Date: Feb 2014 Location: Missouri Posts: 77	This is directed at Carolyn Have you ever considered doing a Gordon Graham. Gordon feed high nitrogen to his plant until it had reached several feet and blew over in a storm. He left it laying on his cantaloupe to shade them and the plant continued to grow longer and also a megabloom formed and a giant world record was born.

March 26, 2014	#228
ReginaAnn Tomatovillian™ Join Date: Jan 2014 Location: Northern CA Posts: 203	Carolyn, Love this thread. Thanks continuing to update it! Growing some tomatoes in 5 gallon buckets this year with the rain gutter watering method and am very encouraged by your crop in the 4 gallons. If I am even close it will be a major success. Thanks again for being so generous with your time and information.

April 9, 2014	#232
tammyinwv Tomatovillian™ Join Date: Feb 2013 Location: wv Posts: 5	Carolyn are you still using the Mittlieder method for fertilizing? Tammy

April 15, 2014	#236
suvoth Tomatovillian™ Join Date: Mar 2014 Location: Canada 4B Zone Posts: 71	I think I may have "Hijacked" this thread. I'm sorry! Last edited by suvoth; April 15, 2014 at 12:22 AM.

April 17, 2014	#237
CarolynPhillips Tomatovillian™ Join Date: Oct 2010 Location: Nauvoo, Alabama Posts: 184	suvoth, you have not hijacked the thread. Post away. This just happens to be the busiest time of the year for me selling plants (greenhouse business) and rarely find a moment to post updates. tammy, I am still going to use mittleider magic mix on container gardening. I will never have enough organic source for the container gardening that I do. I just wanted to try the organic method in the 25 gallon pots to see how they do. They are doing good but they need 2/3 more of the organic slow release because it's not as high in nitrogen as the 13-13-13 and just like the 13-13-13 in the mittleider mix, some nutrients wash out with the top watering. The 9-3-4 organic slow release in additon to the dolomite lime that I am using would do great in an earthbox or anything with water reservoir much better than "run to waste" but as I have seen on the net and agree with, You still have to add another dose of the organic fertilizer about mid season in the containers with water reservoirs. I also think it's best to add Bone meal or anything high in phosphorus into the soil for bigger better fruits rather it be organic or chemical fertilizer added. Due to finances, I will have to use mittleider fertilizer mix in containers along with some organic amendments and use the 9-3-4 slow release organic in the Garden soil. Three plants on the right never got another dose of slow release fertilizer....assuming....cause they are lighter green. Must of got skipped. also growing some Big Beef Open Pollinated in the greenhouse grow bed using the same organic amendments and organic slow release fertilizer plus rabbit manure in the grow beds. __________________ Happy Gardening Carolyn

April 17, 2014	#238
CarolynPhillips Tomatovillian™ Join Date: Oct 2010 Location: Nauvoo, Alabama Posts: 184	Phil, I have thought about the Grahams accident of growing his giant tomato. I agree that there should be a lot of plant behind the fruit just like growing a giant pumpkin. I just haven't tried it yet but working on it. I read his story in the Growing Giant Tomatoes __________________ Happy Gardening Carolyn

April 17, 2014	#239
CarolynPhillips Tomatovillian™ Join Date: Oct 2010 Location: Nauvoo, Alabama Posts: 184	Off topic====Peppers I am growing these peppers in 5 gallon grow bags with organic amendments and organic slow release fertilizer on a water reservoir.. They are doing great but have a few issues. The net pot that sits in the water reservoir isn't long enough to reach the bottom of the reservoir. My soil isn't wicking up water correctly or its because the net pot isn't long enough cause I have to water the plants from the top sometimes. I was going to grow them in the greenhouse with the water reservoir all year but Changed My Mind. I know----I'm a dork. LOL. I checked to see how the roots were doing in the net pots. There isn't a lot of root growth out the bottom yet but enough that it will put them in a little shock if I transplanted them alllllllll to a larger pot and watered manually. I'm going to do it anyway...shock or no shock. It's now or never before the roots get too long into the water reservoir. They will be transplanted into half barrel raised planters. The half barrels don't have a bottom and is just sitting on the ground so the roots can dig into the earth easily. __________________ Happy Gardening Carolyn

April 20, 2014	#240
Growing Giants Tomatovillian™ Join Date: Feb 2014 Location: Missouri Posts: 77	Nice greenhouse! Was it a government project? Any problems with the house or things you would do different as I am starting to build in May!