A Gardeners Forum Forums Gardening Reference Gardening in 2006 Container Tomatoes

Could anyone tell me a good starting soil for my next batch of tomatoes I'll be trying? This round I tried MG Organic and they started out like gangbusters, but they all seemed to develope problems down the road. I had planted 8 different varieties and had some issues with wilt but I dont think all had it. This time I will start my own from seeds that are resistant to most of the diseases, but want to know any tips/tricks to achieve better results. Thank you

David

Mix into your soil about 20-25% worm castings. worm castings increase the biological activity of the soil because they are rich in beneficial soil bacteria and fungi. This makes for a more healthy and disease resistant plant. Look at this pdf for a study of worm castings on tomato plants.
http://www.compostwizard.com/docs/Tomato%20plant%20growth%20study.pdf

And here is the website I found this pdf on.
http://www.compostwizard.com/castings.html

David, I love the Scripture you've chosen as your signature.
I felt happy seeing it here.

A good potting soil without added fertilizer would work well and allow for good drainage. The MG potting soil causes your plants to produce lush foliage only, instead of the plant producing blooms and fruit. You will need to fertilizer from time to time once your plants have established themselves in their containers.

thomast77 - Do you think they sell it in smaller sizes than 1000 lbs? It sounds like great stuff.

Deborah - I loved it too as I,ve been bitten by the daylily bug pretty bad lately and it seems to fit me well. I felt happy too when I ran by it and said is this true or what?

comfrey or anybody - what is considered/known to be "good" potting soil?

I have found the worm casings in 15lb bags at my local good foods co-op so you might be able to find them somewhere local too.

Good potting soil..would not be the cheap soil like Walmart brand etc... just a little higher grade is all..it does not have to be expensive...Or you can go to a nursey and buy their potting mixture.

Is Miracle Grow " Moisture Control" a poor starting base?

For growing veggies in pots "I" would not use that, it might retain too much moisture and cause rot if you don't have good drainage or if the humidity is high.

David, the potting soil I use is called E.B. Stone, it has worm castings, beneficial bacteria, all kinds of good stuff.

I used ProMix BX for my tomatoes (came in big compressed bales) and seem to be getting good results.

Anybody familiar with it? Good choice or not? This is my first year trying to grow tomatoes in containers.

That's a really pretty picture !
I love the cool greens.

One of the best potting and seed starting mixes available.

I've been using Pro-Mix for quite a few now and I have to agree with you. It's the best potting mix I've ever used. I buy it in the big bales and I love the results I get!

Thanks Everyone, My next question would have to be, Where do I find this " miracle grow "?

David

You mean the fertilizer?

No, I meant the Pro-Mix you and patches were talking about.

David, I get mine at Agway.

http://www.premierhort.com/eProMix/index.htm

Target has Miracle Gro potting soil.

I know that our Home Depots here in Ontario sell it too and i would check Wal-Mart...maybe there too.

The closest place that might sell the Pro Mix is 75 miles away from me. Do you reccomend anything else?

Super Soil sold at Home Depot is really good too.

Fafard is another great mix.

You can get it any wal-mart....hows it growing? i started some myself in some pots. I recntly tranplanted some in some pots. One is getting an few tiny yellow flowers, yippy!!

Hi David, I also have container toms and some in the ground (all started from seed) cozied up to watermelons.

The ground crop was set in home-grown mulch mixed with 25% Miracle-Gro Moisture Control (MGMC) (avg $10/per huge bag at Wal-Mart). I admit the ground crop is more lush and each of the 5 has healthy clusters of green toms. The patios were planted in straight MGMC in clay pots and so far, none have bugs or disease. Patios are starting to get blossoms. All get about 4 hours full sun daily.

Like Loveapples, this is my first year growing them. I chose MGMC because it was new on the market and indeed, it has these little balls of water that keep the soil moist between waterings.

I also used MGMC to renew tired soil around garden plants/shrubs and they responded well, including perking up some daiseys I didn't even know where there! This is just my experience, hope it helps

Tomacco