Anyone used a Upside Down Tomato Planter??

So I have never used the upside down tomato planter before, but was given 6 of them! as gifts. I am trying to read up on them online on exactly what to do, but was wondering if anyone has tried them and had any luck or advise that they could give. I am thinking of planting Roma's in them just a simple determinate. I think that should work from what I've read, but some places tell me to use 2 plants and others one, so am not really sure. And with the soil I'm not completely sure either, I have plenty of compost and still have some peat moss. Thinking of just mixing the two together?

Any advice, or tips would be greatly appreciated.

I received one as a gift also. I have tried it twice. My plants have died each time. I am trying it again. The plant is struggling I can see. It is trying to grow upward. I actually feel sorry for it. Who in the world invented these things. They do not work.

I tried one topsy-turvy last year. It’s a novelty.

It has some advantages and disadvantages.

It’s great if you have a sunny place that you can hang tomatoes or other plants.

I like being able to spin the plant so it grows more evenly and gets light to all sides. I turn the plant once or twice a day. It also makes it quite easy to pick the tomatoes.

The biggest problem with it, is using the planter over again in the following years. I have a bad back and am not looking forward to having to dig out the dirt to put another plant in and then have to lift it back up to hang it again.

The turnbuckle occasionally sticks when it gets dry, so I put a little cooking oil on the turnbuckle so it will turn freely.

When you pour water into it, the water has a tendency to run right through it without the soil soaking much water up and without the plant having much time to absorb the water. One of the tricks that many people are doing is to cut a 2 L pop bottle in half, drill a small hole in the cap of the bottle, so the water slowly runs into the plant. A half bottle acts much like a funnel, and makes it easier to water and helps regulate the water flow. It seems like it takes a lot of watering, perhaps two or three times a day.

It would be best if you have a place you can mount it where you can water at arm level, and be able to pick the fruit at arm or eye level. I found it works out very well for decks. I built an arm to hold it out a few feet away from the deck, as far away as I could still be able to reach it reasonably from the deck to water it. To pick the tomatoes I walked down on the ground in front of the deck and the fruit was at a nice convenient level that didn’t require back strain to pick the tomatoes.

The plant grew so well that the vines started dragging the ground so I took some twine and coached the vines to grow back up to the planter. Keeping the vines off the ground does seem to reduce the amount of diseases and snacking animals ( ground hogs, chipmunks, squirrels, snails)

It’s also best to work with a seedling that’s fairly mature; like about 24 inches tall; this way the plant will be able to quickly bend and grow up toward the light. If you try this with a plant that is too small the growth has a tendency to be slower in the shade and the plant keeps on trying to grow back into the pot.

Don't fret whether it is growing up or down; let nature take its course but give it a little coaching now and then. It's best to start with a fairly mature plant that can get out to where it can get good light they will probably start to grow up but as the vines get long and heavy they will start going down to the ground, if they get so close that they start to touch the ground then I start to coach the tips of them to come back up, so I use some fine twine and twisties to coach the plant from dragging the ground.

In hot conditions if you don't water this topsy-turvy tomato planter twice a day or more your plant will probably die or be stunted.

This message was edited Apr 27, 2010 12:22 PM

My hubby brought two home (they were on sale, you know) and are actually the only tomatoes in my garden that need to be put on life support. I have EB 'maters, coir grown bagged 'maters, raised bed 'maters and potted 'maters and they are all fine.

Topsy Turvey is always dry and very heavy. I say it's more trouble than it's worth. Hope you have better luck with yours.

I TOO HAD A PROBLEM WITH THE TOPSY TURVY.I INHERITED 2 FROM MY SISTER FROM LAST YEAR . THEY HAD ROTTED.I REMADE THEM WITH CONTRACTOR STRENGTH PLASTIC BAGS AND TAPE,SO FAR SO GOOD.
I HAVE TO WATER PLENTY TOO.YESTERDAY,FROM MY MISTAKE,(I HUNG THEM WITH BUNGEE CORDS TIL I COULD GET THEM HUNG IN THE RIGHT PLACE)
ONE FELL TO THE GROUND.WHAT A MESS, LOL BUT I THINK IT LIVED THROUGH IT.IT IS FLOWERING ,SO I FINALLY GOT MY ( ROUNDTUIT) GOING AND HUNG THEM PROPERLY.STILL A LOT OF WORK. BUT NICE TO WATCH GROW FROM KITCHEN WINDOW.

I have the tomatoe planter on a stand from the same company. So far it is working just fine. I've heard that the bags don't last though. I haven't fully made it through a summer yet so I'm reserving judgement. Most of those things really can only handle one plant. Check the labeling before trying to plant more.

My kids picked out three little tomatoe seedlings all about a foot tall and we planted those in there. My sense of things is that the smaller tomatoes would do better than the big tomatoes because of the way it is set up. I could be wrong, but trying to grow big Beefsteak or German Queens in one of those just seems like a recipe for trouble. I have cherry and grape tomatoes in the tomatoe planter. The German queen has it's own pot away from the others.

I have noticed that I need to be careful to water slowly or the water does pass right through. I just water it a little, then water something else, water it some more, water something else, and repeat the process until I think it's actually gotten enough. I put the moisture control soil in the grow bag to help overcome some watering errors.

You can turn the stand pretty easily, so I do about 3 or 5 times a week, usually when I go put stuff out on the compost heap. The weather has been pretty mild, if a bit breezy, so we haven't faced the real challenge of summer weather yet.

I have two planted with cherry varieties. They are hung on motor hoists by my in ground/hay bale gardens. The theory was that we could lower them to water, but so far I haven't tried that. I'm also hoping they are high enough to keep them off the ground, for a while at least...
Redneck tomato garden (and proud of it!)

I am trying one this year and it seems to be doing great. I talked to the people at our local nursery and they said to just remember that it's another form of container garden, so you would want to plant a tomato plant that you would normally grow in a container. Also a deteminate plant is better than an indeterminate because an indeterminate plant if it does well will grow down to the ground anyway. One thing I figured out for myself is to be sure and check if the plant needs watered. If you follow the instructions with the planter and water every day you will most likely drown your plant. I don't know how well my experiment is going to work with this Topsy-Turvey planter, but right now my plant in that container does have 5 small green tomatoes on it.

Mine are turning yellow....
Sigh.

I have been talking with my neighbors who's mother uses the Topsy Turvey, so not quite sure how reliable it is but sounds good so I think I am gonna go with it. She told me that she mixes one part each of potting soil, perlite, peat moss and compost, and thank you Ignoramus for the Idea of the 2 litter bottle. I think that will be a good Idea to slowly water them so not to wash the nutrients right out of the soil.

I have a cloths hanger in the back yard next to my garden. It is about 6 fee tall, so I'm not sure if i have enough room, I will be using determinates but still a little worried they may reach the ground.

I figure I have to try, being gifts, plus what can it hurt I either end up with the same amount of tomatoes as last year or more!! I'm hoping for more. I sill have about 1.5 to 2 weeks before I can put my outside. We are still getting days where it doesn't reach 50 degrees.

Everyone seems to have problems with Topsy Turvys from what I am reading here. Although I have not tried one myself, I am not surprised that there are issues with it.

On a positive note, I can see how this would be great for those living in an apartment or townhouse. Additionally, I'll bet that this is a great way to introduce people to the benefits of growing their own food....

I've actually just gotten my first couple tomatoes from my tomato tree planter. The yellow cherry tomato came up first. The sweet one hundreds are ripening, but not too prolific yet. The yellow Brandywine really hasn't even started yet.

So far, I can honestly say everything is growing well. There has been a little yellowing off and on of the bottom leaves. The herbs are thriving and I need to trim them pretty badly, but haven't gotten around to it yet. I've had very little trouble with the silly thing.