Ring Culture Tomato

WLM21

Hi

I grow tomatoes in the greenhouse using a ring culture method, ie bottomless pots resting on the soil base.

The soil is mixed with old leaf mould and fresh grow-bag compost is put in the pots.

The idea of ring culture is that the feeding roots remain in the pot and the drinking roots grow down tothe soil below. You therefore water the plants via the soil and feed via the compost in the pots.

Most tomato feeds say tofeed once a week, but if I leave the pots for a week, they tend to dry out. I'm not sure if I should just add water to the pots, in between weekly feeds, or just feed twice a week.

I know conventional ring culture, the pots sit on gravel or even straw, but I've always just put the pots on the bare soil and everything has been fine.

thank you for any advice given

[Deleted User]

I grow my tomatoes in ring culture grow pots on grow bags and on planters of various types, so they do sit on soil. I water into the outer ring every day, the amount depending on the sunshine etc so maybe a full ring each plant or maybe a half ring or maybe twice a day if baking. I feed with gardenorganic tomato feed every 2 weeks and this also goes into the outer ring in the water. My tomatoes to date are looking very good, big, healthy and there are a lot. I do also cut leaves off, starting from when the second truss is on ie the bottom leaves, up to the first truss come off early on. Now that they are laden, I have taken most leaves off and each plant has 2-3 leaves left. Flowers are still turning into fruit and all fruits are growing

WLM21

Thanks for the reply Kittie .. yes I take off the leqave too, when the lower truss of fruit starts to ripen.

That makes feeding easier too