Another adventure came to life. After watching the topsy turvy tomato planter (http://www.topsygardening.com/) I decided to make a DIY project with a hand full of buckets.
Here are some good points to take in account:
Advantages of growing upside down tomatoes:
- Good For Limited Space: For some people with limited space, hanging a tomato upside down is the only way to grow tomatoes. Some sunny balconies or decks are perfect for growing tomatoes upside down.
- No Staking Necessary: Most tomatoes, when grown traditionally need staking. Stakes are used to keep tomatoes off the ground and to keep the stems from breaking from the weight of tomatoes. Apparently, some people hate staking tomatoes. I don’t have a problem with staking tomatoes, in fact I kind of like it. I build my own tomato trellises with bamboo. It’s easy, cheap and I love the way it looks. But if you hate staking tomatoes, growing tomatoes upside down may be a good solution.
- Foils Some Pests: When you grow tomatoes upside down you don’t have to worry about cutworms or ground fungus. However, these are problems you don’t have to worry about with any tomato grown in a container garden.
Some Disadvantages Growing Upside Down Tomatoes:
Hard to Hang: Upside down tomato planters can weigh more than 50 pounds when they are filled with damp soil and a large tomato plant. This makes hanging them a challenge. If you are going to hang one from a wall or ceiling, make sure all of your hardware is strong enough to hold all the weight. Also, an upside down tomato plant can move in a stiff breeze, so when you are hanging one, make sure you take that into consideration.
Tomatoes Like Growing Up: When your upside down tomato plant starts to grow, it will try to grow up instead of down. It makes a “U” shape and bumps against the planter and looks kind of contorted and unsightly when growing this way. This may not bother you, but, to be honest, I find it a little distressing to see a plant struggling.
Hard to Find Sun: It is critical for tomato health to have full sun exposure - at least 6-8 hours a day. With the planter hanging over the tomato, this can be a problem because when the plant is young, the planter can block the sun and shade the tomato.
Challenging to Plant: To plant an upside down tomato you need to poke the tomato into a smallish hole and then add the soil. After your container is planted, you have to pick the whole heavy thing up and hang it. I found this to be a two-person task, otherwise you run the risk of squashing your tomato or your foot.
Limited Tomato Varieties: Not every variety of tomato will thrive growing upside down. Cherry tomatoes and other small-fruited tomatoes are recommended for growing upside down.
Here is my own hanging option:
Soon enough I´ll post how I putted everything together... Stay tunned :)
