my seeds came today!

10 years ago

I ordered the following varieties (20-30 seeds each) from Tomato Growers Supply Company which arrived today:

Better Bush VFN Hybrid; compact indeterminate
Bella Rosa VFFNA Hybrid; determinate
Grape; open-pollinated indeterminate
Cherokee Chocolate; open-pollinated indeterminate

The last one was free because my order was over $15.

This will be my first time from seed. I'm still relatively new to growing tomatoes and my last several attempts in containers have failed but after reading and learning over the last couple months I know why (mainly too much water retention in those big 10-15gal containers). This time I'm also planning ahead of time.

Can't wait to sow these (and my peppers) late Dec/early Jan!

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Comments (5)

jbclem
10 years ago
I grow tomatoes in 5 gal containers, in pure SuperSoil, and during the long summers here I water every day, so no problem with retention of water. I have tried 15 gal containers a few times, but the 5 gal size (actually more like 3.5 gal) seems to work well enough. I'm actually looking into using polymer pellets so I can cut down on the watering.
Deeby
10 years ago
I grow mine right in the bag of potting soil. The 2 cubic foot one. I punch holes in the back near the bottom and a couple on the bottom.
The plants are tied with twine to the patio roof poles.
At the end of the season the whole shebang goes in the trash.
I'm a patio gardener so there's no compost place or green waste pick up.
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sheltieche
10 years ago
yep, in your zone if you just throw your seeds into the pot and cover with plastic for couple days in the shade you get them germinated and growing in no time
seysonn
10 years ago
Very good kOticc... good selection there.

I have not done much container gardening. But I intend to do some, mostly smaller pepper plants. That is why I have been a regular over "Container Gardening" forum, trying to educate myself.

Most difficult part of container gardening is managing WATER and FERTILIZER. This is especially true with some of the potting mixes discussed in that forum. (Like 5. 1. 1). Those mixes are unknown territories to me. They all seem to be TOO WELL drained and thus not having storage capability for water and the nutrients. But I will experiment with them the next season.
Container size is yet another issue. But I think for annual plants like matoes, pepps, it is not crucial if they get root bound by the end of season. Container size becomes a player for perennial plants.
ka0ttic
Original Author
10 years ago
lindalana, you make it sound so easy lol.

I will be using a mix based on Al's 5-1-1 mix. I haven't figured out what will work best but I'd rather start will a very well draining mix and go from there.

I am trying to do all this organically, and the consensus seems to be using larger containers will help keep temp and moisture more consistent (and therefore more likely to keep those soil critters more consistent). I already have that thread going so I won't go more into that.