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staticx_gw

5 gallon buckets

staticx
13 years ago

i might be growing tomatoes,habaneros,eggplants and okra in 5 gallon or less buckets.

have any of you done this before? and how is the productivity compared to in ground.

Comments (27)

  • lolear
    13 years ago

    No experience yet, but I was planning to do my cukes and brussels sprout in 10 gallon buckets this year. Advice here said 10 gal would do better than 5 gal. You agree?

  • xxx1angel3xxx
    13 years ago

    I have done this quit a few times and would advise the toms be in 10 gal buckets but the peppers should do fine in 5 gal and don't know about eggplant but would think it would be fine in 5 to the production was very good equal if not better than in ground but my soil is a work in progress

  • organicislandfarmer
    13 years ago

    you need a min of 5 gals, mine are doing great except for something looking like blight.

    I also grow in 5 gal styrofoam coolers and self watering containers like my corn
    {{gwi:42770}}
    This fall I am going to use the 35 gal earthtainer type that I will make myself. Dont forget to make drain holes.

  • staticx
    Original Author
    13 years ago

    the buckets i have vary slightly,but the smallest will go to the pepp's. also wat if the buckets had some mildly toxic chemicals in them.

  • franktank232
    13 years ago

    Work great for peppers... better then in the ground for me.

    {{gwi:42771}}

  • organicislandfarmer
    13 years ago

    "slightly toxic chemicals" made me laugh!!! your plants will then only be "slightly toxic"! Its plastic, wash em real good. find out the msds on the chemical to see if special cleaning is required. Have the first fruits tested to see if they contain any toxic levels of this chemical. Or be like me and feed it to my kids first! Stinks to be the Kings food taster!

  • dancinglemons
    13 years ago

    I did a Cherokee Purple in 5 gallon bucket in 2008 - never again. Did CP in 15 gallon in 2009 and had buckets and buckets of tomatoes from one plant - did not weigh but a few and they came in at about 12oz each. Peppers and Eggplant did pretty good in 5 gallon.

    organicislandfarmer,
    I love your corn in EarthBox - no shower cap and 3 rows! I tend to do my own thing with EB also. 3 rows of corn (and other things) with the fertilizer mixed into the potting mix and not in one strip.

    DL

  • organicislandfarmer
    13 years ago

    I love your corn in EarthBox - no shower cap and 3 rows! I tend to do my own thing with EB also. 3 rows of corn (and other things) with the fertilizer mixed into the potting mix and not in one strip.

    The earthbox instructions said two rows of 8 so thats what I did. I also put the fer down the middle as instructed. I didnt want to poke 8 holes in the shower cap and I add additional manure as they grow anyway. They will be regulated to lettuces in the fall as I am switching to the larger earthtainers I have seen pics of. I agree that more dirt = better production ceteris paribus! However I only want plants that are @4' tall and add diluted fert to my water buckets all season long so I feel extra dirt around the roots doesnt help me much. I will see what my roots look like this fall when I switch out to my new seedling. If they are root bound then I know going to the larger containers is a good idea.

  • staticx
    Original Author
    13 years ago

    dancing lemons,why will you never do the cherokee in the 5 gallon again? was it too big for the bucket or unproductive? im asking because i have this variety but the buckets i have i think aRE 10 gallons

  • organicislandfarmer
    13 years ago

    probably because most consider 5 gall to be the min amount necessary for good growth. I am switching to the larger 35 gallon totes this fall for this reason, I want to see if the more dirt= better roots= bigger plants and more production. It makes sense to me. But then mine are doing great in their 5 gal buckets right now and they are way easier to move in case of severe weather.

  • bluebirdie
    13 years ago

    Because you pick your plants very well (all heat loving), they may actually like containers better in your zone because they'll warm up faster.

    However, before I added raised bed for the veggies (took a few years to clean up all the Ivy someone planted), I planted tomato in 15 gallon pots . They grew ok. Then the raised beds finally came along. All tomato are getting at least ten times more and better harvest and much better flavor in the bed. But if you have to do tomato in small pots, try some variety that's bred for the patio (I think they're called... patio tomato?).

    Other things like herbs and peppers actually handled 5 gals all right (some did better in pots). I've never grown Okra. But I assume like eggplants, the dwarf and smaller variety usually does better in smaller pots than the regular kinds.

  • organicislandfarmer
    13 years ago

    I have grown okra in 3 gal pots with great success, I think its a weed the way it grows. and it will produce plenty of pods, find a variety thats not so prickly.

  • bomber095
    13 years ago

    Eggplants and tomatoes both do ace in 5 gallon buckets. It's all I use now for those two crops :-)

  • staticx
    Original Author
    13 years ago

    well, im waiting to plant them in my new backyard but if i wait too long the seedling will get too large.

    i picked pretty large varieties because i wasent expecting having them in pots.
    tomatoes: cherokee purple,fuzzy peach,gregories altai,berkley tye dye,azoychka and black krim.
    eggplants: black beauty
    habeneros:chocolate,paper lantern,orange
    okra:emrald

  • organicislandfarmer
    13 years ago

    Dans right about the watering, I suggest getting some rainbarrels.

  • emgardener
    13 years ago

    I've been planting in containers and beds for years (actually decades).

    Tomatoes were never good in containers compared to ground. Taste and yield were always lower. Tried both 5 gallon and 20 gallon self watering containers.

    Eggplants absolutely love containers much better than in the ground. 3 plants to a 5 gallon bucket is fine. Never plant eggplants in ground anymore.

    Peppers are OK in containers. It is easier to control the soil/mix wetness in containers to make sure they don't get too wet, which peppers don't like. (Eggplants love it wet & hot).

    Squash in a container was a total dud for me. Green beans were great. Did it in containers for years, but switched to garden bed after I added new beds.

    Basil & herbs only go in containers.

    Try looking at the Container chat board here at gardenweb. They have lots of good info.

  • nicksteel
    12 years ago

    I'm experimenting with growing tomatoes in different sized modified 5 gal buckets. Some are full 5 gals without the water reservoir, some are 5 gal less the reservoir. The ones on the right are Big Beef Hybrid, the ones on the left are Early Girl Hybrid. I've also set up 2 large containers with 2 each of the same to compare. They are all watered with a simple gravity/siphon system I cobbled together to simplify watering.

    Here is a link that might be useful:

  • northeast_chileman
    9 years ago

    Yes I have!

  • Michael Madden
    7 years ago

    I am looking for suggestions on Planting my tomatoes this year using these items I picked up from the dollar store. I'm thinking of using these items to somehow create a self watering system but I'm not real knowledgeable about that. Are these buckets too small to grow Cherokee purple tomatoes?

  • digdirt2
    7 years ago

    What is the size of the big can? How many gallons? Plus it is clear so you will have to wrap it in something dark since roots are negative phototropic - no light exposure for them.

    Dave

  • Michael Madden
    7 years ago

    They are 6 gallon buckets, to cheap to pass up. I have a few cans of black paint but I think I'ma take your advice and just wrap them sounds easier anyway.

  • becky7a
    7 years ago

    Planted several 5 gal buckets last year. 1 winter squash; 1 yellow crook neck squash; carrots; cucumbers; tomatoes and peppers. I placed one tomato with one pepper in each pot. I had good yield. The key is to water frequently. Usually once daily, but when it gets really hot, 2x daily. Make sure that your pots have good drainage.

  • glib
    7 years ago

    frankly, 5 or 6 gallons is small for tomatoes. But it is just right for peppers and probably adequate for eggplants.

  • Michael Madden
    7 years ago

    Any self watering ideas?

  • pondgardener
    7 years ago

    check out earth buckets for a self-watering possibility...I have grown some very large tomatoes in 5 gallon buckets that I have buried into the ground. Think about how tomatoes are grown hydroponically...if you provide the right amount of nutrients along with adequate water and light you should get good results.


    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lE8OrdUZQKk

  • spartanapples
    7 years ago

    Greetings:

    Last year I gave some of my extra tomato plants to my sister-in-law. Due to deer issues, she planted them in containers on her patio. Not #5 buckets but in pots of similar size.

    The SunSugar cherry tomatoes did great, but the heirloom slicing tomato fared poorly as all the fruit had blossom end rot. Weird as I grow both of these varieties in my garden and never have blossom end rot issues.

    I will conclude that it is possibly from the tomatoes being in too small a container or they were in some soil free planting mix.

    Just an FYI that not all tomato varieties seem to perform well in containers. Container size, soil mix and tomato variety all seem to play a factor in performance.

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