I planted a couple of Tomato plants into a pot today, one a Roma and the other a dwarf heirloom called Siberia.
I made the potting mix using equal parts of my own bin compost and sheep manure. It is a heavy brew but excellent for holding water which is so important when growing tomato's in a pot. The sheep manure is a little low in nutrients but when you use it at this rate it will supply slow release fertilizer to the tomato's for the whole growing season.
They are planted with a parsley and a marigold for companion planting pest control.
As I eluded to before keeping the water up to the tomato's in pots can be bit of an issue particularly in a hot climate like ours. The sun heats the pot up which accelerates the evaporation and can mean they run out of water by the end of the day.
Using a heavy potting mix as I have helps, water crystals are great, the soft drink bottle trick is useful and cardboard is another great way to keep the pot cool. As you will see in the photo I just cut a cardboard box to fit around the pot leaving plenty of space between the pot and the cardboard for air flow. This keeps the direct sun off the pot not letting it remain cool all day long.
Be Happy,
Barry.
www.organic-vegetable-garden.net
