Got my feet wet this past summer. Made some newbie mistakes but learned a few things too. Had a Cherokee Purple in a 24x16x14 in tote that did well...used the pine bark, peat and perlite mix. What really like this as opposed to my side yd clay soil garden was bell peppers. Looking forward to 2012. Eggplants also flourished in the soil-less mix in containers.

Here you go. Just a few of the many discussions here about this question:

Best variety for and tips to grow in containers

Tomatoes in containers?

Growing tomatoes in containers

Growing tomatoes in containers

Best tasting container-friendly tomato

What size containers?

Don't forget to also check out the Container Gardening forum here.

Dave

I have a buddy who grew tomatoes in containers over the summer. He used 13 gallon buckets and soil that held water really well. I think some of them were Big Boy variety. His plants got about 5-6 feet tall and were really bushy. Check out the link to my blog page about it below.

Here is a link that might be useful: Sam's Container Garden

I would try cherry tomatoes. They don't grow too big and watering requirements are relatively light.

Here is a link that might be useful: Economic Survival Gardening

I would try cherry tomatoes. They don't grow too big and watering requirements are relatively light.

I assume this was posted just to link to your survival blog. If so you need to do some more research.

The statement is not accurate. Most cherry-variety plants are as large, many even larger, than the average indeterminate tomato plant and require just as much if not more water.

Dave

Thanks Dave. and I would like to add a gentle reminder that we come here to TALK TOMATO! LInda

Here are a few pictures from my container grow outs. Also bumped the Dwarf availability thread so you can see the New dwarf releases from the Dwarf Project started 5 years ago at TV. Ami

Here is a link that might be useful: Tomatoes in containers

Whether you use a simple container or a earthbox design with a reservoir completely depends on your environment IMO.

When I lived in Sacramento the tomatoes in the ground garden dried out wayyyy too soon even with being watered 2x a day. In the 38g homemade 'earthboxes', 2 to a 'box they were good but were also watered twice a day. The difference is they drew from the reservoir while I was at work and were very happy with it. They were all (20 plants!) very happy & produced a ton of fruit.

"Earthboxes" and the ones you make don't always work well. Here in KC, MO the tomatoes didn't need that much water apparently & the water reservoir became a mosquito haven. They do not have mosquito control here btw and it was a nightmare to water those poor plants without being eaten alive.

I do have a farm where I'll grow most of my produce this year but plan on trying tomatoes on my back patio. Just not in an "earthbox" situation.

My black cherry, sungold select & other cherry tomato plants were easily at least 12' tall. Once they grew out of the extra large cages & 8' stakes I just let the vines drape down. They may be cherry tomatoes but they're HUGE plants and have equally huge water requirements. The comment that cherry tomatoes "don't grow too big" is completely wrong.

Hope this helps :)

KC, I think EB growers in different parts of the country have had success by floating those mosquito dunks in the resevoir. LInda

The bigger the container, the better. That's because container tomatoes dry out quickly. Larger containers allow them to put down good roots. We had awesome experiences with Bush Goliath and Patio F.

Here is a link that might be useful: Best tomato varieties for large containers

I have grown tomatoes for years in containers, and although I have returned to in ground growing, I still have tomatoes in containers too. Salad Bush and Bush Goliath are both varieties I have had good luck with. This past summer, I grew Sungold in a 15 gallon nursery pot. It did very well and I will definitely have more of it next year.

At least in my area, the secret is to use the biggest container you can lay your hands on. Five gallon buckets are not, in my experience, large enough. Regular fertilizer is essential. My growing season starts in April and goes until November. I add slow release fertilizer to the pots every other month. AND I give the plants liquid fertilizer every other week. And, finally, of course, regular water. If the pot is large enough, even here in Mississippi, once daily watering is sufficient, assuming you used a high quality potting mix.

Linda,

Even if the dunks are organic & guaranteed safe, I have a problem with putting them in the water my tomatoes would be sucking up from an EB. Those I'll have on my patio will probably be in single 20g containers & I'll just have to water a lot. :)

KC - I grow in EBs and containers, largely because I dont have enough EBs to grow all the toms I want! Many EB growers in mosquito country on a forum for EB so they must find a way. Some use mesh screen or weed fabric at openings unstead of the BT dunks. Hate to see a good Earth Box go to waste! Linda