Toms in Pots

I am thinking about trying
tomatoes in pots this year.

Any ideas of the minimum
size of pot I would need ?

i would say a 5 gallon size, but the bigger the better, of course :)

I did grow one of the new dwarf varieties in a 3 gallon pot last year. It produced a reasonable number of fruit, but the ones in homemade earth boxes (2 to a HEB) did a bit better.

Not knowing why you are considering potted tomatoes, what I have done and still do, is to bury the pot at least 1/2 way in the ground. I use heavy duty 5gal. pots and usually 1/2 and 1/2 potting soil with regular soil. May not work for you but then it might. This is o course same as pot in pot.

Larry

Since I am planning on growing tomatoes in containers this year, I've done alot of research over the winter.

Growing Tomatoes in Containers
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ld-v4zFAWP0
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ilxmkxfj7Mw&list=TLrgGNZB1GCD4

It's usuallly recommended to choose tomatoe varieties that are either specifically for growing in containers (patio varieties) or determiate (bush) varieties or for short stature varieties (dwarves, especially: while the plant is small, the tomatoes are regular size).

The Dwarf Project
http://www.dwarftomatoproject.net/
Tomatoville is all about tomatoes and has specific forum for growing in containers
http://www.tomatoville.com/

Most tomatoes can be grown in a minimum of 5 gallon containers. The name-branded buckets at Lowe's (white), Home Depot (orange ) and Walmart (blue) are but a few low cost ones. The white buckets are good for reflecting the sun and helping to keep roots/soil cool, as is shading the bucket itself (with a scrap piece of cardboard etc) Some cherry tomatoe varieties (Tumbling Tom, Tumbling et al) are less than 18 inches tall, with cascades of tomatoes: these can be 2-3 plants in a 12 inch pot.

Self-wicking 5 gallon tomatoe container
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TSrJjxxIvTs&index=5&list=TLrgGNZB1GCD4
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CB7MFkudQvc&list=TLrgGNZB1GCD4

Container tomatoes grow shorter than their maximum height listed (if not SPECIFICALLY for containers) and produce less than those grown in ground.

The container soil is important and there are a lot of recipes for how to make it. It sometime seemed like container soil recipes were like belly-buttons: everyone has one!! Drainage, moisture and making calcium available for the fruiting tomatoe plant is crucial: container tomatoes are susceptible to blossom end rot (BER); insufficient available calcium and irregular watering are cited as causes.

Happy growing!!

Baja,
We love to grow tomatoes in home-made self-watering containers. I have four that I made from large round containers I bought at WalMart (I am sure they hold at least five gallons); they hold I plant each. I also have a bunch of 18 gallon containers, converted into self-watering planters, that hold two plants each.

The difference in productivity is in the amount of planning and execution you put into setting up the boxes and choosing the right soil ingredients. I have been most successful in the boxes when using no soil at all, but coconut coir, peat moss, and perlite. This is the combination I plan to use this year. Others have said they were successful with Miracle Grow right from the bag; we were not. However, we only did this one year, year before last, and I believe everyone in the area had poor harvests. Last year, for health reasons, we did not plant any tomatoes.

Best of luck in whatever you choose to do.