Is a Milk Crate Big Enough to Plant a Tomato?

[donrae]

Hey all, just looking for some advice. I'm going to have my big garden out back, but I'm wanting a little group of planters with some tomatoes up close to the house. I'm looking around at what I have to use for planters, and a milk crate caught my eye. I could line it with say paper bags? to help hold the dirt in. Just wonder if you all think it would be large enough. I've got grape and cherry tomatoes and Early Girls.

If not tomatoes, I could stuff it with Wave petunias, I guess. That could be pretty too

 

[0wen]

A lot of people grow tomatoes in 5 gallon buckets - which is probably pretty close in size to the crate. It will probably be fine...

 

[donrae]

Probably pretty close, you're right. I went ahead and planted one, I think the Early Girl. We'll see how it does. Thanks!

 

[AllynTal]

Small varieties grow well in 5-gallon buckets, but the big indeterminate vines would prefer something with more room, like an 18-gallon container. I put two plants in 27-gallon containers. They will grow in small containers, but the plants won't be as big and robust and you won't get nearly the yield from them.

 

[Arielle]

Probably pretty close, you're right. I went ahead and planted one, I think the Early Girl. We'll see how it does. Thanks!

From all my reading at a tomato forum, you just need to feed that plant in a bucket what it needs to keep producing. Water, supplements, compost tea, etc. Dont worrry about rootbound..Just keep feeding it. With the early girl as an indeterminate, you can prune it to just a few leaders......it is a vine type and should produce all the way to frost...just needs to be kept growing so it can set new buds for more fruit. Think a good support for it, too.Many options there. A cage, a stake, or overhead structure..... or you might try Mr Wilbers method, or a shorter version of it.

Ive been spending farrrrr too much time at Tomato ville!!!!!

 

[donrae]

Well, it did fine. Not a huge, highly productive plant like were it planted in the ground, but good enough. I had to water basically every day, and did compost tea a lot. I'll probably use the crate for cherry tomatoes this coming year.

 

[Arielle]

Well, it did fine. Not a huge, highly productive plant like were it planted in the ground, but good enough. I had to water basically every day, and did compost tea a lot. I'll probably use the crate for cherry tomatoes this coming year.

Hmmmm a cherry is usually very vigorous. Have you thought about one of the newish dwarf intdeterminates??? A group is developing tomatos that are crosses using a dwarf and a favorite indeterminate. If NOT suckered it will stay a bushy determinate like tomato vine.
I have been eager to try a couple , they have over 60 varieties now released thru small growers. Some willl produce up to 10 pounds of fruit in a season, others are less productive.

THe 10 pound list and taste by one consumer at 8/10 for flavor.
Dwarf Emerald Giant,
Summertime Green,
Rosella Purple,
Mr. Snow,
Wild Fred,
Sweet Sue
, Summer Sunrise,
Summertime Gold,
Summer Sweet Gold,
Wherokowhai,
Blazing Beauty,
Orange Cream,
Golden Gypsy,
TastyWine,
Wild Spudleaf
Loxton Lad (or Lass).

Tomato season will soon be here...again!

 

[donrae]

Honestly, I've not even thought about a garden for the coming year. We've been back and forth on moving or not, so I've not wanted to make plans for the place we live currently. But I"m thinking containers will be the way to go, they can up and move with me if that happens. I'll refer to your list, thanks so much for that. Tomatoes are hand's down my favorite thing