From my experience, the bigger the container, the better. This past summer, we raised our tomatoes in 2 ft x 4 ft x 20-inch high raised containers that I built from rough lumber. These held two plants each. With this setup, I don't think we were limited at all in our choice - we had 10 ft. high, healthy, productive plants in a really lousy (e.g. wet, cold) summer in NW Indiana. I had the lumber on hand, but I understand 1/2 wine or whiskey barrels work too.

I guess I didn't exactly answer your question, but if you're reluctant to sacrifice the types and yields you're accustomed to, size-up a bit and take your pick.

A 10-15 gallon pot is plenty big. I grew Better Bush, Golden Girl, Bush Goliath, Heartland, Husky Red, and Super Bush in (real) Earth Boxes last summer. (Two plants per box.) Golden Girl is a great tomato, and the winner of the lot. Many folks like Better Bush. For a container cherry tom., Husky Cherry Red is excellent. It is a 4-1/2' - 5' plant with excellent qualities. -WC

IF YOU PM rnewste and contianer Ted they will give you some good info on growing in contianers

I have grown most of my varieties in 15 gal min size off and on over the years - the production and plant size most of the time is less but sometimes not - the really small and determinates can go into as small as 5 gal but 10 is better

It basically depends on how much time your going to devote to your plants. If your going to be away 2 or more days from your garden frequently then SWC's (Self Watering Containers) or an automated watering system with open containers would be needed. If you don't plan on going anywhere then 5-10 gallon containers will grow any indeterminate tomato variety. Supplemental fertilization of the plants will be required with 2 applications a week with the 5 gal and one application for the 10 gal.. I use BioBizz Bio-Grow added to my water can when watering my plants. Ami

I second the self-watering container option. With the right potting mixture and fertilizer you can grow any tomato variety that you'd grow in the ground--so you could still do all your favorites. I use both Ray Newstead's EarthTainer and the commercially available EarthBox. I have also made SWC's out of two matching 5 gallon buckets stacked together, but for one plant only. The only drawback to SWC's that I've found is overwatering--it is very easy for the mix to wick up way too much water. There are ways of handling this. Search here and in Container Gardening. I have not had much luck with growing in other containers, possibly because of our hot, dry climate. I can't seem to get the watering right--it's usually too dry on the top, too wet on the bottom and soil temps get too high. Shouldn't be too much of a problem in NE OH.

Here is a link that might be useful: EarthBox

To control moisture in a SWC like the EarthBox or EarthTainer, I am finding that a Combo Mix of a 3:2:1 ratio of Potting Mix, Bark Fines, and Perlite does a pretty good job of producing healthy tomato plants.

Of course, local weather / rain conditions may produce different results. The best thing is to start with this ratio as a "base-line" then experiment for your local conditions.

Raybo

I second the last three posts. I have had my highest yields by growing my favorites in five gallon containers. I plant containers in two rows spaced three feet apart, with the pots four inches apart. Plants are pruned to one stem and few suckers, string trained to a single overhead support from a running wooden A-frame. Only indeterminate types take to this method. Very labor intensive with the pruning and the watering.

Alternatively, any bush determinate type should do well in a five gallon pot sans staking even. But don't prune them. I love New Big Dwarf, Early wonder, Praire Fire, Gold Dust and Lime Green Salad. Want to try Black Sea Man also.

My indeterminate favorites are too numerous to mention. Current top three are Monarch, Golden Monarch and Aunt Ruby's German Green. Oh, and Paul Robeson.

According to research from an Ortho Tomato book I read many years ago, one can maximize yield using the bear minimum of soil and space using the above method or something similar: The idea being that five pruned plants each in a five gallon pot will out-yield one plant in a 25 gallon pot. Same soil volume, more tomatoes. This has been my experience.

Each plant is reduced in its productivity overall. But they still yield plenty. I mix peat, manure compost and perlite 3:2:1 in my pots and they drain well. The tomatoes will completely satisfy their pots in just a couple of months so feeding will be necessary. Use the good stuff.

Last year I tried 6 containers. A hot pepper was grown in one while 4 different tomato varieties were grown in the others.

Lemon Boy was the absolute star performer compared to the others. I even was able to start and get a good yield from a sucker pruned from it in one of the containers where a cherry tomato had been physically ruined in an accident.
From these two containers I am certain I had at least two pecks of tomatoes by summers end and had great difficulty keeping them adequately watered, particularly in August.

Other varieties in the containers were Super Marmande, Early
Goliath Hybrid, And Golden Queen. Of these the Super Marmande did best but was not at all adequate in terms of yield or vigor.

I'm going with all 5 in Lemon Boy next year. The 6 gallon buckets have a false bottom with three 3" dia short perforated pipes down to the bucket bottom. There are several 3/4" holes around the side of each bucket at the bottom, and the buckets sit in a very large plastic saucer
which acts as a reservoir for water. The buckets sit on my dock at lakeside and are watered with lake water. Green
moss like stuff wants to grow in the saucers and that is a mess I have to solve next year. Suggestions would be welcome.

I think you can grow any tomato in that size container not just determinates. I have grown Beefmaster, Better Boy, etc... in containers. The bigger the container the better the yield generally, but even in a 7 gallon pot you can get a few tomatoes.