Planting tomatoes in containers, how big do I need to go?
Question:I have some cherry tomatoes as well as regular (I suppose) tomatoes. They are all going into containers. About how many gallons worth of container per tomato should I have? I'm thinking that maybe I can get away with about 5 gals for the cherry tomatoes, and 10 or so gals for the bigger tomatoes?
Answers:
Those sizes sound fine. You cannot use a container that is too big, after all the earth is an infinite size container for plants in the ground. I have grown container tomatoes for 2 years now and always use at least 5 gal. pots.
Remember-the more roots, the more fruits. Tomatoes will grow stem roots if you bury part of the stem, so I let them get a little height in a smaller pot, and when I'm ready to transfer to the larger pot I pull the lower leaves off the stem and bury up to half the stem in the potting mix.
Don't forget to fertilize every two weeks since minerals are quickly depleted in a container without readily replenishing themselves like in the earth. I use Espoma Organic Tomato Tone. It is a 4-7-10 mix. In case you're not familiar, the numbers represent Nitrogen, Phosphate, and Potassium in that order. Whatever fertilizer you choose, make sure it has a higher number for Phosphate and Potassium than Nitrogen to promote flowering and fruiting.
Oh yeah, and I usually plant a marigold in the pot. They help keep unwanted pests away and bring pollinating bees around.
I've got some really tall cherry tomatoes growing in pots. The pots are about 30cm wide x 30cm deep x 30cm high (30cm is about 1ft or slightly smaller). They are doing well apart from something stealing them. Just remember that if the plant is going to be really tall, you need to have enough weight in the pot to stop it from falling over.
I grew plenty of great tomatoes in 12-inch clay pots; I'd say they probably hold two gallons of soil, tops. I think five gallons is bigger than you need, even for the standard sized tomatoes, and DEFINITELY a bit much for the cherry tomatoes.
One of the best ways I found to grow tomatoes and other veggies is to get a small livestock tank (the steel kind); fill it with dirt, and you've got an instant, raised garden - great if you live in an apartment or other place with limited space. If that's too big, go with steel washtubs or even buckets. Oak half-barrels work really well too.
Happy gardening :-)
5 gallons should be enough. I have seen older people growing theirs in 5 gallon buckets.
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