quadgrow, chilligrow, oasesbox or hozelock growbag planters

[monkeyboy]

Last year, I tried growing my tomato plant (gardener's delight) in a growbag. Whilst I got lots of foliage, I ended up with blight and lots of little green tomatoes. I think adequate watering played a part. This year, I'd thought I'd see if there was a better option and have come across the following:

https://www.hozelock.com/our-product...owbag-waterer/
https://www.oasesboxgardening.co.uk/
Award Winning Quadgrow Holiday-Proof Planter
Chilligrow Chilli Planter - Designed By Chilli Experts

I'd need enough for six plants (four indeterminates, two determinates). I've no greenhouse so once the plants are ready, they'd go outdoors. I don't plan on being away but I am worried about not watering enough in warmer weather.

Has anyone used any of the above with successful results?
Or should I stick to bottomless pots placed into a growbag (which is what I did last year)?

[veggiechicken]

It doesn't matter what system you use, if you're growing toms outdoors you're 99% certain to get blight - unless you grow one of the blight resistant varieties.

[Small pumpkin]

I use a chilli grow system for chillies ( in a polytunnle ) with great success. Brilliant thing.
For tomatoes I think it would be to small, a quadgrow would be better ( as far as I know, the same system as a chilligrow but bigger). I don't know anything about the other set ups.
But I agree with VC it's not going to make any difference to blight.

[monkeyboy]

I think part of the reason for blight was that the tomato plant hadn't developed as much and took ages to fruit compared to a friend who managed to harvest all of their fruit whilst mine were flowering (I think I was hit around October time). I was hoping to support development of the plant and encourage growth with adequate watering and feeding.

[nickdub]

Growing toms outside in the UK is always a bit of a gamble with the weather.

The more protection you can give then - even against a wall for example - the better the odds on getting a crop. Doean't have to be fancy - a bit of plastic sheet and a couple of bricks will do for a start.

[the big lebowski]

i think one prob you might have using the out side is if you add feed to the reservoir and it rains it will dilute the feed out and you will end up with just water in the base ,apart from that i have heard good things about those systems ,good luck

[rary]

Make a frame with 2x2 wood long enough to hold a grow bag line it with plastic and place some bricks in it, this is to hold the bag clear of water that will be added to the tray, push some folded newspaper into the bottom of a grow bag this is to act as a wick to draw water in to the bag place the bag on the bricks fill the tray with a water, and water the bag this is to start the capillary action, plant your tomatoes keep a level of water in the tray and add feeding to the bag as required

[Lumpy]

I have grown all of my toms outside for the last couple of years and have never had blight.
4 in hanging baskets and the ones that survive my less than gentle growing from seed get shoved in pots.

I suppose it depends have the virus is spreading in your area that year.

Either way my plants will be outside again soonish.

[Penellype]

I've grown tomatoes in quadgrow, chiligrow and hozelock waterers. The chilgrow is too small for anything other than the little patio plants.

The quadgrow gave reasonable results and would probably have been better if I had remembered to feed the plants as often as I should (I'm lousy at feeding plants). The hozelock waterer comes in 2 types - one with a tray and one without - I tried both. The one without is designed to take a grow bag and was devilshly difficult to set up - I wasn't terribly impressed. However using the one with the tray plus bottomless pots to give some depth worked well, and even better when I treated it like a quadgrow by pulling strips of capillary matting up into the bottomless pots to make wicks from the reservoir. The huge advantage of this system is not so much avoiding blight (which you can't really), but avoiding problems from uneven watering, which can result in blossom end rot.

I very much recommend self watering pots with reservoirs - the duogrow one, which has a huge reservoir, works superbly for cucumbers.

[monkeyboy]

Growing toms outside in the UK is always a bit of a gamble with the weather.

The more protection you can give then - even against a wall for example - the better the odds on getting a crop. Doean't have to be fancy - a bit of plastic sheet and a couple of bricks will do for a start.

Funnily enough, I was thinking of making a wooden frame (with a base for the plants to sit off the ground) and then covering it with some sort of sheeting. I was originally going to build one using polycarbonate sheets but don't have a router to create a ledge for it to sit in.

Is there a preference for the sheeting or plastic cover?

[nickdub]

I'd go with polycarbonate as it last longer - no need for a router just cut some thin strips of wood and nail or screw them to the base board if you need to make a rebate to take the clear sheet. I screw right through the polycarbonate too and use a washer to hold it - you can make some good rigid structures that way, as long as the aesthetics of it aren't a priority.

[4Shoes]

You just need a sneeze to get blight here

[monkeyboy]

I'd go with polycarbonate as it last longer - no need for a router just cut some thin strips of wood and nail or screw them to the base board if you need to make a rebate to take the clear sheet. I screw right through the polycarbonate too and use a washer to hold it - you can make some good rigid structures that way, as long as the aesthetics of it aren't a priority.

Thanks. I had originally planned to make something like this:
https://www.diy.com/departments/b-q-.../239155_BQ.prd
Buy Gardman Wooden Growhouse at Argos.co.uk - Your Online Shop for Greenhouses, Greenhouses and accessories, Conservatories, sheds and greenhouses, Home and garden.
but figured it'd take a fair bit of effort and I'd need at least a router to create rebates for the polycarbonate sheet.

When I saw your recommendation of using a plastic sheet, I thought about a basic rectangular frame standing vertically with legs at the bottom for support and wrapping the whole thing in plastic sheeting. More simple but no idea if more sturdy.

In any case, the plants would be up against fence panels and face the sun from around 10am to 4pm.

[Jimmy]

My 6x8 glass GH is about 45 years old.
Before this I had a plastic lean-to, must have been in the late 60s.
I recently found an old photo.
The toms were grown in the ground and we had a super crop.
Also in the photo is a dustbin and a beer brewing bin.
I don't remember the other weird looking object.
Any ideas ?
Jimmy

[nickdub]

The wooden frame anchored to a wall, as in the link you provided, is definitely a good start - as near to south facing as possible for preference.

From there it probably depends on how much you are prepared to spend compared with how long its likely to last and also a bit on your DIY skills. Using plastic sheeting as you describe will definitely do the job and allow you to get a good crop but unless its specifically horticultural grade, as in the poly-tunnel stuff, it won't usually do a second year.

I tend towards the strong but unrefined style, so I go for polycarbonate if I can, as it will definitely do 10+ years. I'd make the basic box to attach to the wall using scrap wood - screw sheets to the 2 sides and the top and make one rectangular separate frame for the front and screw 1 or 2 sheets to that. If I felt fancy and there was room, I'd put some hinges on it - otherwise I'd use some string or wire to hold it in place. No need for mega accurate cutting or fitting, a few gaps to let air flow through are needed anyway, else it will get too humid for the plants.

Good luck and happy gardening - Nick