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glok_gw

tomato questions

19 years ago

Last year, I bought a pack of Tumbling Tom cherry tomatoes and w/s them and had them in hanging baskets. They did good, but they had such tough skins that none of us liked them. Anyone got a tried and true variety before I go buying again!

And what would be a good sandwich type tomato that doesn't mind being grown in a pot?

Thanks all,

glo

Comments (9)

  • 19 years ago

    I can't answer the sandwich question cause I haven't grown any toms in pots, but I can highly recommend Black Cherry tomatoes. OMG, sweeter than grapes, so sweet you can serve them for dessert! Watch out, though, the vine will take over your veggie bed!

  • 19 years ago

    Glok, I'm sorry, I don't eat sandwich toms. The big toms I grew for hub were bullies in my raised planter, and would probably be a disaster in a hanging basket. I'm sorry to hear about the Tumblng Toms, I just checked those out on Pinetree but went with a different type.

    Next year I am doing the big ones in 10 gal planters I salvaged from work and the cherry/grape toms I like will go in upside down planters I just bought.

  • 19 years ago

    Bush Early Girl and Patio Hybrid both like being in pots. The Patio Hybrid has a tamer taste than Early Girl, but it sure makes a beautiful plant - looks exactly like the photo on the seed packet!

    The Early Girls I have in pots now have produced tomatoes nearly as large as my fist. I don't have any Patio Toms this year, but have grown them several times and they typically got to just a bit smaller than a tennis ball.

    If you don't mind slices on the small side, Romas can do very well in pots, too. And if you want to plant a big old beefsteak in a big old pot, then go for it! Lots of folks grow their tomato crops entirely in pots.

  • 19 years ago

    I'm growing a dozen Tomato plants in pots this year. I have them in a woodchip pile nursery bed beside the driveway, which is the sunniest spot (8+ hours) on my property.

    {{gwi:427981}}

    Here's the end view, showing a run of shrubs and a run of grasses sharing the bed:

    {{gwi:427982}}

    The Toms, left to right:

    'Viva Italia'
    {{gwi:427983}}

    'Container Choice'
    {{gwi:427984}}

    'Razzleberry'
    {{gwi:427985}}

    'Green Grape'
    {{gwi:427986}}

    'Ruby Nectar'
    {{gwi:427987}}

    'New Big Dwarf'
    {{gwi:427988}}

    There's also a 'Black Cherry' in a pot, but I didn't get a pic of it. It's an experiment, because it really isn't suited to containers, but I have it in a 10 gallon, and I've restrained it to a single vine.

    The pots are all 7-10 gallons, and where I have two of a single variety, I used different concoctions of potting mix, so I could compare production.

    They're small for this time of year, but producing nicely. I didn't get them into the big pots until early July, but they had already been potted up once.

  • 19 years ago

    I really like your string setup, Donn. Gonna have to steal that, I think.

  • 19 years ago

    Steal away. I use loops of old pantyhose on the branches themselves, and then cheap sisal twine to run from the pantyhose loop to the bamboo. It restrains the plants without restricting them, so they can still move with the wind, which helps develop strong stems.

  • 19 years ago

    I must be the laziest gardener... I plopped my WS black cherry tomato in a baker's icing bucket with some Wal-Mart topsoil and one application of Miracle Grow (my dad's touch when he babysat my stuff during vacation, I wouldn't have thought of it). I did a little bit of pruning early on but probably not much, I pinched the tips when it got as tall as me [over 5 feet] and I tie up anything that gets bent to three poles stuck in the bucket.

    It doesn't produce tons or anything and the cool weather has slowed down the ripening, but I'm the only one in the house that eats tomatoes so it does just fine for me. It doesn't even need salt IMHO.

    I'm definitely planting this one again next year in a bucket.

  • 19 years ago

    Beautiful pictures, Donn! Haven't had tomatoes that pretty since we lived in Nebraska!

    Thanks everyone. I'm definately going to find some of those Black Cherries! Hopefully I can find a good spot for the tomatoes next year!!!

    glo

  • 19 years ago

    I grew black cherry this year, in the ground and have seeds if anyone wants to do a sase. Email me, I'm going to offer this on the WS exchange board also.
    Alberta

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