EarthTainer and other SWC questions?

[Blueaussi]

You found Pro Mix at Lowe's?

..she sez hopefully.

[matertoo]

Blue:
My english composition skills aren't the best. I hate to make long posts.
Found the Pro Mix at a local nursery. They had ordered it for their own use. I saw it and bought it from them ($38.15). I saw the cages at Lowes in Gardendale above Birmingham.

Paul

[Blueaussi]

Well, dang.

I'm going to have to road trip some day and get some from that hydroponics store in Charleston, I guess.

[rnewste]

Originally Posted by matertoo

Ray

I found some four-legged cages at Lowes-top hoop diameter was 16". I believe these were made by Panacea (sp?).

I also found a compressed bale (3.8 cu. ft.) of Pro Mix BX with Mycorise. Will I need to add the Perlite to this?

Paul

Paul,

The cages will work, but will be a bit smaller than the 18" ones. You may need to attach the Wire Rope Clip at the top hoopset, to keep them aligned vertically.

Regarding the ProMix BX, great score!! I hope Lowes in California will start carrying it, as it is a high quality product. Having said that, alone it will compress too much in the EarthTainer. It is made up of 82.5% Sphagnum Peat Moss, 17.5% Perlite, and 5% Vermiculite. I would definitely add the Decorative Bark (Bark Fines) to adjust the composition to a 3:2:1 ratio of ProMix BX, Bark Fines, and Perlite. Perhaps the Perlite in the ProMix BX will be OK, but I would add in a bit more.

Raybo

[mtbigfish]

mewste
have you ever used the crushed white volcanic rock vs perlite?
Dennis

[matertoo]

Ray:

Thanks for the info. For the time being, I'm going to hope my local nursery can come through with some 18" cages.

Happy Matering,

Paul

[rnewste]

Originally Posted by mtbigfish

mewste
have you ever used the crushed white volcanic rock vs perlite?
Dennis

Dennis,

I am not really sure where folks can find crushed volcanic rock easily. Perlite, on the other hand, is carried by all nursery stores around the country. I am just trying to recommend ingredients that are easily sourced.

Raybo

[Katmary]

Raybo,

This isn't a question, but a HUGE THANK YOU for coming up with such great ideas and directions for the ET's and experimenting on ways to make them better. Both my Dad and I built them last year. We're from San Jose, and he's in Lincoln currently, I'm next to Folsom now. He couldn't grow any tomatoes in the ground, AT ALL. Well, not healthy plants at least. It was to the point where he was ready to throw in the towel. The soil is clay with huge boulders. I talked him into trying them and sent him links with your beautiful plants and directions, and he decided to give it a go. IT was his best year EVER! I'd done pretty good prior, but also did way better with the ET's. I also planted a bit later than him, and even my cherries didn't grow until August, while all of his were going early. The greatest for me was seeing his excitement each time he brought over tomatoes, so THANK YOU very much for helping him NOT give up doing something he enjoys.

Kathy

[lj in ny]

I have a question about using SWC in the Great Lakes region. My area averages about 3.5" rain per month during the growing season. What would be the advantage of using a SWC here? Would I run the risk of having saturated soil and bland tomatoes? Anyone out there have experience with SWC in areas where you get a lot of rain during the growing season? I have more tomatoes than garden space this year and wonder if I should go through the expense of a half dozen SWC or just use regular draining large containers.

Thanks!

[eddie46]

Ij,

I'd just keep doing what works for you.

Ed

[lj in ny]

Well Ed, that would be the logical thing to do! but last year was the first time I grew tomatoes in containers and they got wiped out by late blight along with all of the tomatoes in the ground. After such a dismal season last year I'm looking to get maximum production this year!

[rnewste]

lj.

If you have ample room for in-ground growing, I would highly recommend you stick with it. The advantage of the EarthTainer (and other SWCs) is that you can take advantage of deck or patio space where you could not normally grow vegetables. Here's an example:



There are some other secondary advantages (no weeding, reduced in-ground insect infestation, gopher retardant, etc.) but if I had the open space, I would really focus on in-ground gardening.

Raybo

[eddie46]

Ij,

I have a summer home using Earthtainers. I have my big garden at my residence. Late blight got me good at my residence and all my neighbors.
The cottage 50 miles away had no problems nor neighbors. I started all my plants form seed.

Ed

[lj in ny]

Everyone I know around here got wiped out by late blight, I always start from seed and got it just as bad as my 17 year old neighbor who bought his plants. It was a sad year.

Hi Ray- I've run out of garden space and started more tomatoes than I have space for, I've got plenty of deck/patio/full sun (non garden) space. I'm trying some new varieties so I don't want to give the starts away.

[danwigz]

Internal aeration?

I'm intrigued by the Earth Trainers, while at the moment I don't need to use one, in the future I might. I've been thinking about the water inside the ET, specifically how much oxygen it contains. I was wondering if anyone had ever thought of inserting an aerator in the reservoir to increase the oxygen content of the water, and if so have you seen any improvement in yield/size/etc.?

I only bring this up because in some hydroponic systems an aerator is beneficial if the water is not naturally aerated.

Some problems include, having an electrical device outside, possible clogging (I'd assume the water gets a little soil in it), no way to see how well its working.

Dan