Will the gritty mix stay in the barrel? Can't really answer. Where are the holes - how big - anything covering them? I can tell you it won't jump out over the top of the rim! ;o)

Is this the right mix to use? You'll need to decide that based on the effort it takes to find the ingredients, make it, and the expense, but strawberries will do VERY well in it with the right nutrition and irrigation habits.

Since none of the places I've called have either gran-i-grit or Turface in stock, I'll need to special order it. Anyone in the Mercer County, NJ area have a source?

Turface MVP is allegedly now call Turface Field Conditioner - is this correct? As far as I know, it's still called Turface MVP.

Last and most important question - since I don't know the volume (Turface and Starter Gran-i-Grit are sold by weight), can someone ballpark how much of each I would need for my 55 gallon barrel? Are you sure it holds 55 gal and it's not just a section of a barrel?

For 55 gallons, you need about 8 cu ft of soil, so to be safe, figure you need about 3 cu ft of bark, screened Turface, and crushed granite (you need grower size, not starter). The granite is about 50 lbs/cu ft, and the Turface is about 35 lbs/cu ft, so you need about 150 lbs of granite and (if you are screening it) 130-150 lbs of Turface MVP or John Deere Allsport.

Al

Al, thanks for the advice. Now that I'm seeing other comments, the 8" PVC strawberry tower seems to have a lot of appeal.

Given that I've purchased the strawberries, I really need to decide on a container ....

Andrew

Good luck with your adventure! ;o) We'll want pics, you know?

Al