Ring Culture in the Greenhouse.

[Forkin Marvellous]

Hello (First Time Poster)

I'm into my first year of allotment gardening and I got a greenhouse in early May.

It's stocked to the brim with Tomatoes in grow bags which are doing well, however with work and family I don't water them as much as I should.

Thinking forwards to next year (meaning I'm definitely hooked on this gardening malarkey)

I was looking at alternatives to Growbags.

So far I've considered border soil, however the risk of pest build up and weeding has had me concerned.

I then saw Ring Culture using aggregate.

Does anyone know how to set this up? Do I need to layer some breathable membrane down and cover with gravel or is is a polymembrane which keeps the water in?

Help?

[cariann88]

Hello and welcome
I am still learning myself and I am sure someone with more knowledge then me will come and help you out.

[Bren In Pots]

Hello and welcome to the vine here's a couple of older threads about ring culture for you to have a look at it might give you some ideas :-

http://www.growfruitandveg.co.uk/gra...ure_30650.html

http://www.growfruitandveg.co.uk/gra...ast_44217.html

[lyndapet]

i use bottomless pots into grow bags in 1 greenhouse and pots into soil in the second GH .I find the tomatoes grown with roots into the soil seem to be more successful. This is my 4th year of growing this way and have had no problems. I seem to remember reading a Joe Maiden trial where he tried growing directly into soil, in growbags , ring culture into grow bags and ring culture into soil.His conclusion was that ring culture into soil produced the best results.


Sent from my iPad using Grow Your Own Forum mobile app

[Forkin Marvellous]

Thanks for the welcomes!

I've had a look on the previous threads (Thanks for the links). Seems like the consensus is that using just gravel is likley to lead to poor tasting yields. I'm thinking as lyndapet mentions above doing it into soil with rings... I've heard there are good ways to sort the soil out if there is a pest build up.

I might just resort to digging out the soil each year and enriching with compost etc.

[teakdesk]

I might just resort to digging out the soil each year and enriching with compost etc.

Another Welcome from me!

I've grown on aggregate, made a wooden surround and used a polythene liner to make a tank. Worked OK but was a lot of effort and preparing for the next season seemed too much effort (aggregate full of roots and, since it was left over winter, slime!). Never did it again.

Of growbags, rings on grow bags, pots, rings on pots etc. my preferred method now is a raised bed (with a sunken path for extra height) either side of my greenhouse. I believe too much is made of disease build up (in the past soil was removed and steam sterilised ever year) in composts and don't renew yearly. I admit there are problems lurking but think I have a few years before it will be noticeable (fingers crossed ).

I might try rings on my raised beds next year.

[Two_Sheds]

Tomatoes in grow bags

As you have found, grow bags are too shallow and therefore dry out too quickly. The simplest remedy is to cut the bag in half and plant into the cut end

[Forkin Marvellous]

Yeah, they do dry out quite quick and getting water in there without washing away the soil on the roots and onto the floor can be a pain...

The gravel idea and ring culture is sounding like more hard work than is necessary.

I have been doing research and while I'm not going to do the Ring Culture just yet I am going to seal the borders in using old decking I have (So raised beds) and I'll enrich the soil using compost/manure dependent of the crop going in. I've decided to do one half tomatoes next year and one half Aubergine, Melon and Cucumbers. Then I will alternate these each year in an attempt to stop pest build up....

To combat weeds I am going to put some Weed Fabric down pegged to the side which should also offer some form a sort of moisture retention for the soil... (He says with hope)

Thanks for the help guys.

[veggiechicken]

Hello FM and welcome to the Grapevine.
My GH is on slabs so I've edged it with boards on 3 sides to make a U shaped bed. Lined it with polythene, and filled the beds with compost. Tomatoes are planted in Flower buckets with bottoms cut off (cheap ring culture pots!!), resting on the beds. I water the beds but put the feed into the buckets.
Some photos http://www.growfruitandveg.co.uk/gra...ml#post1244325
At the end of the year, the soil in the buckets is emptied onto the beds. As you can see, I grow cabbages and salad veg in the beds alongside the buckets.
I used gravel beds initially but it got mucky quickly from the soil being washed down out of the buckets.

[roitelet]

I've grown tomatoes and Aubergines this year in rings made of pond liner and filled with a mixture of 50/50 soil and garden compost. Result, the plants are better and have more fruit on them than the ones grown in the beds. I feed from the top and water from the bottom. I will do it again next year.

[Hans Mum]

Mine are grown in cheap morrisons flower buckets with bottoms cut off and they grow brilliantly also Ive found this method reduces watering drastically........