Home
Garden Gnomes
Organic Or Not?
A Victory Garden
Garden Soil Truths
Best Fertilizer
Organic Fertilizer
Compost
Pest Control
Weed Control
Raised Beds
Grow Tomatoes
More Vegetables
Contact Us
Our Privacy Policy
  Geefrank is growing tomatoes upside down

Growing Tomatoes Upside Down

You’ve probably noticed a new gardening trend - growing tomatoes upside down. This is a strange idea for an old gnome who has been growing tomatoes right side up for over a hundred years. My first thought was, “why would I want to hang from my toes to pick tomatoes”. But while I was pondering that, Martafrank was wandering by with stakes, to stop our tomatoes from sprawling over the ground. Clearly growing tomatoes upside down was an answer to at least one problem.

Advantages To The Plant

All gardeners should be concerned with the health of the plant. In tomatoes, there are some soil-borne fungal diseases such as fusarium and verticillium wilt that can kill a plant very quickly. Although there are now hybrids that are resistant to these problems, there are many great tasting tomatoes that are susceptible. Growing tomatoes off the ground and in containers will avoid these problems. Some bugs will also be eliminated because they crawl over the ground to reach the plants. Upside down plants will still be subject to flying bugs though. Growing tomatoes upside down can also create a better airflow between the thick branches, and this will alleviate mold problems in humid summers.

Advantages To The Gardener

Not everyone has the space to plant several tomatoes in the ground, and there are only so many containers that a deck will hold. Hanging a few tomatoes so that they grow upside down will allow you to grow lettuces on the deck and tomatoes from the roof making the most of your space. There is also an advantage to those who have limited mobility. The plants can hang from a tree or other support, again leaving the main part of a raised bed for other upright vegetables.

Commercial Models

There are several models on the market right now and they fall into two groups. One group is a semi-flexible bag that contains holes at the side for several plants, or tomatoes. The others are rigid plastic buckets. Things to look for are a sturdy place to insert a hanger and a wide enough mouth for the plant to be inserted and grow.

There should also be a place to water and something to stop soil falling out. The container should also be large enough to keep sufficient soil moist and cool during the growing season – there have been some cases of the plastic getting too warm and ‘cooking’ the roots inside.

Make Your Own

Every gnome is handy with tools. Give him an idea and he will search around for the materials to make one. So the upside down tomato bucket was such a project.
  1. You will need a plastic bucket that is about 5 gallon in size with a strong handle.

  2. Make a hole in the bottom of the bucket just large enough to slip the plant's foliage through the bottom of the bucket, leaving the root ball inside while letting the plant hang out the bottom.

  3. Fill the container with soil from the top.

  4. Plant Naturtium seed (a trailing variety) in the top of the bucket.

  5. Hang the bucket from a strong hook in full sun.

  6. Water regularly from the top, and fertilize every three weeks throughout the season.

  7. As the Nasturtiums grow, the edible foliage and blooms will cover the outside of the bucket.

  8. The tomatoes will hang down from the bottom of the bucket eliminating the need for staking, tying, weeding and most disease and pest problems.

  9. Just pick and eat both the tomatoes and the nasturtiums.

Here are two photos of a couple of my bucket bottoms. Most utility or food service buckets have a re-enforced ring in the bottom (left). It is as though the bucket makers knew we wanted to grow upside down tomatoes. Drill out the hole inside the collar with a 1 ¼ “ bit and your're good to go. Notice (right) I also drilled a few other smaller holes for drainage.



Here is my Upside Down Tomato bucket the first week in June. Lot's of fruit forming and the Nasturtiums are blooming and starting for cascade down the bucket.



If you decide to this, you will be amazed at how well they do, and by growing tomatoes upside down you will save yourself all the labor associated with traditional growing such as digging, staking and bug patrol.

Happy gardening,

Geefrank







Return from Growing Tomatoes Upside Down to Growing Tomatoes Main page

Return to the Vegetable Gardening HOME PAGE

footer for growing tomatoes upside down page