My fiance and I have just started learning how to grow tomatoes in containers. We built an 8 foot by 2 foot planter about 45 inches high, drilled drainage holes, put in drainage stones, potting and regular garden soil, mulch and organic tomato food, in layers. We have 8 tomato plants that seem to have about 3 stems apiece. They are currently all planted in the one planter. I have staked them the best way I could. Some are bearing fruit (albeit green as yet). Have we planted them too close together? We are looking for the best fruit yield to eat, can and give away. I am concerned because some people say they should be 2 to 3 feet apart. They are all indeterminate heirloom Southern tomatoes like Arkansas Traveler and Brandywine. Do we need to build a second planter and move half of them over to that one to give them more room? Any tips on pruning without losing fruit bearing branches, or could we be fertilizing better? We live in middle Tennessee, it's 100 degrees some days, they are in full sunlight. I water them twice a day, morning and after dark and they seem to need it! Please help! If I need to move them I will... it cost a ton to build the first planter and if anyone has ideas on a more cost-effective way to build the second it would be great. We went to Lowes. Thank you so much!!!

What I don't understand is why the planter is 45" high. You're going to have to stand on a ladder to do any maintenance or reach the fruit. Or is part of the 45" a built-in trellis above the soil? Or maybe the depth of the planter solves some sort of landscape design problem related to a change in grade. How deep is the part of the planter that holds the soil mix?

Rocks shouldn't be needed for drainage; they just take up space that could have been used for potting mix (no actual dirt, please, because it doesn't drain well) and root space.

Any tips on pruning without losing fruit bearing branches

All tomato branches (main stem or lateral branches/suckers) will bear fruit. Any pruning you do will cut down on the number of fruit.

How tall are the plants at this point? When did you plant them?

Your planter would do better with no bottom at all, as it could then wick up moisture from the ground and wick away excess root zone heat. You should have good soil in TN, too.

As far as building another planter goes, the price you pay is mostly for looks. A foot or so tall is plenty of height. Lowes will sell what looks pretty, but some junky old boards or even an old tire will accomplish the same thing. A lot of old-timers use worn-out tires, one tomato plant each. They are usually free, because there is a disposal fee. And if you're wondering, they are not toxic at all. The problem is looks and how much you value what your neighbors think.

If you want it to look nice, buy some new treated lumber, coated deck screws, and cheap metal brackets for the corners. Like tires, treated lumber is also not toxic to your plants. If you really want to splurge, use the synthetic decking lumber. It's pricey, but lasts forever.

Of the four fellow tomato growers nearby, they all plant too close together IMHO. Most of them don't mulch. None of them trim the bottoms of plants for blight. And none of them seem to want to change their habits when I suggest this is why they don't have fruit in October.

DarJones

So my two cents is that planting them farther than an inch apart might give you a better over all yield if it protects the plants you've got.

And if you keep the close planting, be sure to pinch all those suckers!

that planter is so massive that you probably used topsoil? It would take an awful lot of bags to fill the back of a pickup truck with an 8' bed.