Charlie,

All my container plants are fine, except for the tomatoes. The grasshoppers ate every leaf off every tomato plant in containers back in July and I didn't replace those tomatoes because I still have millions of grasshoppers. I think the hoppers hit the container plants so much worse than the in-ground plantsbecause they were in Maddie's Peter Rabbit garden which is directly adjacent to our neighbor's 45-acre cow pasture. The regular garden which is not directly adjacent to the cow pasture has significantly less grasshopper activity and damage.

In containers at the present time, I have 6 or 8 different varieties of sweet and hot peppers, strawberry plants (they look fine but aren't producing now because they are spring producers) about 8 or 10 varieties of ornamental peppers, herbs (basil, mint, lavender, rosemary), sweet potatoes (2 varieties, the other 18 sweet potato varieties are in the ground) and lots and lots of flowers. All are doing well considering the long run of high temps over 100 degrees that we had in August.

The hot and sweet peppers in containers all are in containers ranging from 7 to 10 gallons in size and all of them produce as well as or better than the in-ground plants. I'm having a really good pepper year....possibly the best pepper year ever....and only wish everything else had produced as well as the peppers in 2010.

Earlier in the season, I had great production on all my container-grown tomatoes, harvesting ripe tomatoes from those plants beginning the last week in April and running through about the last week in July. Once the hoppers started eating the foliage, it only took them 4 or 5 days to strip the plants bare.

Last year, in cooler and milder conditions and without the massive influx of grasshoppers, my container-grown tomatoes produced all summer long until about late-September, although some of them got pretty tired looking in August but then rebounded when the weather cooled.

Do you have plants in containers this year, or are you just planning for next year?

Dawn

Hi Dawn
I moved all my pepper plants out of the gtound into containers and they did much better, even tho I could improve, but I am encouraged. I only had 2 tomato plants for fall and they are in bad shape despite watering every day and miracle grow once a week, in 5 gallon containers. But yes I am trying to put together all the info for next year, as I am increasing amount of container plantings.

What tomatoes do good for you in containers usually, I'm not much on the tiny tomatoes (cherry)?

Charlie

Charlie,

With containers in the 5-10 gallon range, the following have produced very well for me (especially if I site them where they have morning sun until about noon or 1 or 2 p.m. and then shade for the rest of the day):

Jaune Flammee'
Better Bush
Bush Early Girl
Husky Red
Husky Red Cherry
Stupice
Sophie's Choice
Martino's Roma
Ildi cherry
Heidi Roma
Nebraska Wedding (gets about 4' tall, so 7-10 gallon size is better for it than a 5-gallon size)--this one has orange fruit
New Big Dwarf (same size recommendation as Nebraska Wedding)--this variety produces large, tasty pink tomatoes, with pink really meaning light red

With containers in the 10-20 gallon range (I like to use those tubs that molasses cattle feed come in), you can grow just about anything. Some varieties that have performed well for me in the molasses feed tubs include:

Little Lucky (fruit about the size of a ping pong ball)
Celebrity
Better Boy
Big Beef
Beefmaster
Dr. Wyche's Yellow
Golden Queen
Cuostralee'
Polish Linguisa
Homestead
Carnival
Boxcar Willie
Black Krim
Cherokee Purple
Chocolate Stripes
Caspian Pink
Mortgage Lifter
Marianna's Peace
Bush Goliath
Whopper
Aunt Ruby's German Green
Amish Paste
Momotaro
Livingston's Magnus
Homestead 24
Amish Salad

Dawn

I guess I'm container challenged. Initially, my tomatoes in containers were growing great. Then we had flooding and excessive rain for the better part of June so most of the tomatoes were pitched due to blossom end rot. The soil just never dried out. Along came July which brought drought conditions and even with daily watering, I just couldn't keep sufficient moisture in the soil. Of course, August brought the hoppers. *sigh* I'm learning that it's always something and gardening in Oklahoma isn't for sissies. lol

I probably won't try to grow tomatoes in buckets next year but will definitely try peppers -- they seem to be less tempermental. So, the science project lives on......

Lynn

Hi Lynn

What soil mixture did you use in your containers? Was it a pre mix or self mix?

Charlie

Lynn, This was a really hard year for tomatoes in containers, and I expected it to be (based on the end of El Nino and knowing we'd be transitioning into La Nina, which means hot/dry weather for me). So, I only planted a handful of toms in containers and went with more peppers and am glad I did. In wetter years, like 2004 and 2007, I have had good luck with many, many tomato plants in containers but that's because those were wet summers. The real trick, of course, is to be able to 'guess' in March whether we're going to have a wet growing season or a dry one. Sometimes I guess correctly and sometimes I don't. It is rare we have two wet years in a row, so I use that knowledge to help me guess, but sometimes we do have two dry years in a row and I'm betting next summer will be very hot and dry just like this summer was, so I'll plan my container plantings for 2011 accordingly.

Charlie, A couple of years ago we had an extensive discussion on growing tomatoes in containers, including how to mix up your own soil-less mix for them. I'll find it and link it below. You might find some useful info in it.

Dawn

Here is a link that might be useful: Container Tom Thread from 2008

My container tomatoes didn't do worth a pooh! However, I've discovered that peppers do better in containers and therefore, most of my peppers may be in containers next year. I used the sta-green potting soil with mixed results based on their location.

Also, I learned cucumbers DO NOT do well in containers. =(

Paula

Overall my container plants did ok this year. Not as good as many of the in ground plants but only lost two. One to disease and the other because I hadn't drilled holes in the tub and drowned it. Production has been fair. I have never got the production or overall growth as I do on in ground plants. But still allows me to trial and save seeds from more. This is the 3rd year I've grown in containers so still have some learning to do. I grow all types in the tainers. I use mainly old molasses tubs so they are big enough to grow anything I want too. I added compost and the Jobes tomato and vegetable additive at transplanting and then sprayed every 7-10 days. Mainly with the Fertilome 9-58-8 bloom and root feed early and then after fruit set the Bonnies liquid feed. Happy with the results. Jay

Dawn

Thanks for the Thread on Containers a lot of good info there. So when will it all be in book form? By the way how did the Sun Leaves Grow bags work out for you?

Paula

What was wrong with your attempt to grow cucumbers in containers? So far mine started one month ago are doing real well.

Charlie

Charlie,

You're welcome. I thought it was full of all kinds of info you might enjoy reading.

I am writing the book one thread at a time on this forum. I'll never sit still long enough to write a real book though.

The Sun Leaves Grow Bags worked out very well, and I still use them when I need extra containers. I like them the best of all the Grow Bags I've ever seen because they have a white exterior to reflect heat.

Dawn

Dawn

What size do those come in?

Charlie

Charlie - The container mix used was our own concoction. We used mushroom compost, a little Black Kow manure, Gardener's Secret, Stay-Green veggie/flower mix then added a handful of epsom salts, bone meal and Espoma tomato tone stirred into the hole at planting. I mulched with straw on top.

I think with the soil mix, along with growing smaller tomato varieties, under normal conditions would have performed well. My two main difficulties were the extreme shift in weather conditions and that we used mostly 5 gallon buckets. We did use a couple of extremely large (tree) containers and the tomatoes in those buckets did very well. In fact, all but one are still growing and have just started to set flowers again courtesy of the cooler weather.

One thing I learned after the fact (but will keep in mind for next year) is to replenish the nutrients in the soil since frequent container watering washes the good stuff out of the soil. Perpetual learning curve... :-)

Lynn

Amen, Lynn!! Perpetual!

And I think, Charlie, the reason my cukes didn't do well in containers was not only the weather fluctuation, but trying to time watering with my work schedule which didn't always jive real well. It was/has been a constant battle.

But it has been said many, many times...there's always next year...and that "learning curve" will continue.

Paula

Charlie, They come in all sizes. I use the 10-gallon ones. I've linked a page from the supplier I use.

Lynn, I agree that it is a perpetual learning curve. Since we are dealing with Mother Nature, about the time we think we've figured out all the answers, she changes the questions.

Paula, Is there anything gardening-related that hasn't been a constant battle this year? We've fought the weather, including late freezes, early heat, excessive heat, excessive humidity, excessive heat indices, hail, flooding, drought, snow (in our garden it fell on the first day of spring), and all the garden pests. I feel like we all have been 'at war' for months.

Dawn

Here is a link that might be useful: Sun Leaves Grow Bag's at Worm's Way

"At war" is a perfect way to describe this year's gardening season. However, my "arsenal" is growing..heh, heh...

lol!

Lynn, maybe using the Sta-Green Flower/Veggie mix is the reason for your BER and perhaps other issues with the containers as well. It is not forumalated for use in a container mix. It's purpose is to amend ground soil and would be much too heavy and water retentive for container plants, IMHO.

I have been working on using a container mix called Al's 5:1:1, modified a bit by adding some chicken manure, sphaghnum peat, perlite and turface to the pine bark fines which is the basis for the mix. You want a well draining container soil, but not so well-drained that it needs to be watered 5 times a day. I also throw in a hand full of dolomitic lime (I use Espoma) and Tomato Tone. So far, this mix is proving much better than any of the potting mixes I've used in the past, including Sta-Green potting MIX not soil, which is good, but just not "as good".

Anyway, using the garden soil in your mix may be the reason why your containers never dried out. Just a few thoughts.

Susan

Susan, I guess anything's possible with the BER problem. I've certainly seen some really strange things in my garden this year. The Stay-Green and Black Kow were only a small portion of the mix with the bulk being compost. The BER hit during the 'monsoon' season. The tomatoes that followed escaped a similar fate. Of course, those few tomatoes arrived during that 2.5 hours of decent weather in between the rainy season and the drought. lol Once the heat arrived in full force, their demise was slow and painful for both of us.

It's funny you mentioned Al's mix. I've been spending a tremendous amount of time on the citrus forum due to a recent acquisition of an Improved Meyer Lemon tree (insert nervous gulp here). I've rounded up all the ingredients for his 'gritty mix' and will be screening and potting up in the not so distant future since the temps are becoming more agreeable. Please feel free to pass along any citrus tips since you've had great success with your Ichang which seems to forget it's not supposed to grow here. I love garden surprises, don't you?

Lynn