The most frequent questions I get about tomatoes, are from people interested in growing them but who have very limited space. In addition, the same folks often express concern about their own gardening skills. In this posting, I'll show you an almost fail-proof way to grow delicious tomatoes, even if you have almost no space and lack a green thumb.
The Best Container for Tomatoes
If all you have is a balcony or a small patio, the best approach is to grow tomatoes in containers. I've been testing a type of self watering plastic container called an Earth Box for two seasons and believe it to be the best system for gardeners who have limited space and who don't want any of the hassles associated with traditional gardening.
The Earth Box has many advantages over other container systems and is particularly well suited for new gardeners and those who tend to over-water their plants. Here are some of the advantages of the Earth Box:
- Self-Watering - The Earth Box is a "self watering" container. You "water" your plants by filling a reservoir that sits at the bottom of the container. When the reservoir is filled, excess water spills out from a drain on the side of the container. When you see water coming from this drain, it's time to stop watering. Once filled, the reservoir provides a steady source of water for your plants. The water is drawn upward towards the roots by capillary action. All you need to do is keep the reservoir filled. At the beginning of the season, this means once per week, but during the heat of summer, you will need to fill the reservoir more frequently, perhaps even once per day. That said, it's very easy to do and no bother.
- No Worries About Soil Preparation -The Earth Box kit contains all the fertilizer you need for a single season. Just fill the container with potting soil you purchase at the garden store and the fertilizer that comes with the Earth Box kit. That's all there is to it. You can buy additional packs of fertilizer each year to replenish the nutrients in the soil. Earth Box even sells organic fertilizer re-fills for those interested in organic gardening.
- No Weeding - After filling the Earth Box with soil, you cover it with a black plastic cover that comes with the kit. The cover has elastic around the edges so it easily fits right over the top of the Earth Box. You then slit two holes in the plastic and plant your tomato seedlings in these two holes. The plastic keeps weeds from growing in the Earth Box and it also helps retain moisture.
- Easy To Move - The Earth Box is built with four wheels on its base. This makes it easy to move if you need to do so.
- Tomato Cages - While not part of the standard kit, you can buy an accessory cage that fits right over the Earth Box. I recommend this since it keeps your tomato plants properly trellised.
- For more detailed information about how the Earth Box compares to other container systems, check out my prior posting on Vegetable Containers Compared. The Earth Box costs about $45 and can be purchased from your local garden store or via Amazon.com. If you have Amazon Prime (free shipping) it won't even cost you anyting to have them deliver the Earth Box to your door. A very similar product, The Tomato Success Kit, can also be ordered for $65 including the trellis from Gardener's Supply.
Tomato Seeds and Plants
Tomatoes plants can be either determinate or indeterminate in their growth habit. For container gardening you should select a determinate tomato variety because this type of tomato only grows 3-4 feet high. By contrast, an indeterminate variety will grow over 7 feet tall, making it impractical for container gardening.
Fortunately, there are many good varieties of determinate tomato available on the market today. If you are willing to start tomatoes from seeds, there is a very wide selection available from companies like Baker Creek, Tomato Fest, Parks Seed, and others. When you shop on line search for "Determinate" and you should get a list of determinate varieties from which to choose. Tomato varieties such as Burbank Slicing, Carnival, Grushovka, Bison, and Manitoba are all reputed to be good, but there are so many varieties in various shapes, colors, sizes, and for various climate conditions that I'm hesitant to make a specific recommendation.
If you really want to make it really easy for yourself, go to your local garden store and buy tomato seedlings instead of seeds. Seedlings are several weeks old by this point, so you don't need to fuss with germinating seeds in trays or run the risk that the delicate young seedlings will die.
Buying seedlings at the store also gives you a jump on the growing season because by the time you buy them at the garden store, the seedlings are already several weeks old. If your garden store doesn't offer determinate tomatoes that appeal to you, some catalog merchants sell plants as well as seeds. Check out Burpee and Territorial Seed Company. Both sell live plants through the mail.
Seedlings at the garden store are generally labeled with information about the variety and and a picture. The description should say whether the variety is determinate or not. If you are not sure, just ask the garden store staff for help.
Extending Your Growing Season
When growing determinate tomatoes, you may want to stagger the timing of your plantings since determinate varieties produces all the fruits at once. If you have one Earth Box, buy and plant one seedling early in the season, and then purchase and plant a second tomato seedling a few weeks later. If you have multiple Earth Boxes, you can stagger both the timing and include more varieties of determinate tomatoes in the mix of things you grow.
Sunlight Is the Only Requirement
If you use the Earth Box and a determinate variety, I'm very sure you will be successful. However, sunlight is a requirement for success. Tomatoes can't be grown in the shade. During the summer months, tomatoes need a minimum of 8 hours direct sunlight to bear fruit and will do even better if they get 12 hours sunlight. As long as you have a location that gets sunlight, it really won't matter if the space you have is a balcony, small patio, fire escape, parking lot or roof top.
If you have questions about growing tomatoes, just leave a comment.
these tips are going to come in handy for the next season! thanks a lot for this post, i am bookmarking it
Posted by: Faye | 09/14/2012 at 05:40 AM