Container tomatoes can be tricky, lots of variables but that's how I grow them. Send me a message offline if you want to discuss this further as we'd have to play twenty questions.

Regarding your beds, how deep are they? Solarizing will usually only get the top 6-8 inches, and nematodes are often found as deep as 18 inches.....

Tom

Hi Tom, I know that you do the container in container method. I've seen that on other threads and it's a fantastic idea!! Was telling my hubby about it the other day. My beds are probably about 10 inches deep.

...My beds are probably about 10 inches deep.

You'll probably okay then with solarizing since you've added a few layers of DE. Let us know how your fall season goes ;-)

Tom

Thank you for your input Tom. I'm hoping to have a productive garden this year. Last year things really got away from me but it's all a learning process! :)

It was a lot of work to dig that all out to re-line the bottom and put the DE down so I hopeful that it will all be worth it. I'll definitely post the results and I've "clipped" your how-to posts on the container method just in case I decide to resort to that next year!

I have had HORRIBLE problems with nematodes. The one thing I found that worked is first to till (which a local organic farmer suggested). They are soft boddied critters so they are brought up to the surface and dry out easily plus it gets rid of the roots they live in. Then one year I turned an area that was infested into a compost pile and it really helped. I guess because it blocks the weeds that can host them and it increases microbial acitivity and the overall health of the soil which I have read helps.

When I'm ready to plant I till in the pile. It improves my soil and seems to reduce the numbers of the nematodes. But they do come back. I have them so bad that it's a constant battle. I also plant marigolds and use as many resistant varieties as I can. Since I've started doing all this my garden is much more productive. From what I've read it's almost impossible to completely eradicate them but now I seem to have them under control.

That's good to know ocala, so I guess since we dug out the entire bed into carts and picked through to get all the old roots out that should help. Hopefully that, along with the DE and the solarizing should do the trick!! Or, as you said, at least cut them down quite a bit.

I'm curious about how this works out for you. I'm still in the process of assembling my raised beds. My plan so far is to put in 9 of them, use three for permanent plantings (blackberries, blueberries) but all but one of the remaining I plan to leave empty every summer and solarize. I want to say that the University of Florida literature recommends that every summer in areas with a problem. I've also read that the nematodes hate soil heavy in organic matter, preferring sand. Now I'm thinking I may put DE down before the cardboard to hopefully give me a full trouble free year.

How abt. just planting resistant plants in the beds on the ground, and using actual RAISED beds for susceptible plants? up off the ground, make a frame of PT wood w/ holes for drainage, line it w/cardboard and then put the potting soil in and plant in that, similar to a large 'Earth Box'... or make large 'Earth Boxes' and be done w/it, and plant things like tomatoes and peppers in big pots, lots of things grow very well in pots. sally

Good luck, I find it easier to make 2-3 CF of potting soil each year and grow my tomatoes in fresh mix....

This is similar to what we made for our raised beds. They were horribly expensive to buy so hubby and I found a guy who needed a stand of bamboo thinned out and cut it down, brought it home and he made his own version from looking at this picture. They have worked for a couple of years but are really starting to weather. We had so much fun together doing this that we'll use them until they fall apart and then probably go to Tom's method!

Tom...what is CF??

I didn't solarize over the summers and, obviously I should have. The bottom was originally lined with cardboard, but that breaks down over time so you can't really count on that.

CF = cubic feet

Now that is really cool, that should have been made into a Tiki bar instead though ;-) You and hubby are very talented!

Like Denise said CF = cubic feet. Looks like I misspoke, I make a lot more than 2-3 CF, I meant to say 2-3 CY (cubic yards, 27 CF x 2-3).

Tom