My first few EBs, tomatoes looking ill.

[MacSmiley]

I'm under the impression that Espoma has a garden lime that's pelletized, but that has been approved by EB forum members for dolomitic lime.

[Texas.Micky]

New findings. Finally had a moment to refresh the 2nd EB that had Cucumbers, Zucchini, Squash in it that produced only a few edible snacks. This is not due to the EB, many contributing factors were involved. Not the least was an overzealous lawn crew that apparently thought the cucumbers and zucchini were grass or weeds.

Anyway, upon reusing the 2nd EB that was done for, I noticed something that might be a contributing factor. I could find no trace of the organic fertilizer strip that was clearly there when planting. I've read about digging out the old strip and that it might be crusty... I dug up the entire box, mixing in added dolomite, fertilizer and added some new mix to get the appropriate mound on the top and planted seeds for a fall garden. I added about an extra cup(4) of the organic fertilizer which is labeled 4-6-4 and was the only organic one available at that store at the time.

I've got this one in a location where it will get constant attention for watering and pest/disease scouting and should be good in terms of sunlight and protection from wind.

While I know the timing may not be perfect here are the seeds planted. Cilantro, Lemon Balm, SuperSweet 100 hybrid tomato, Roma tomato. The Cilantro and Lemon Balm are just for show and while I could use them in salads and such, the tomatoes will be allowed to crowd them out if they wish.

I do plan to pick up an EB trellis kit tootsweet in case anything does well.

[alwayslearning]

I do plan to pick up an EB trellis kit tootsweet in case anything does well.

With the growth an Earthbox provides, you'll need to get those tomato supports in place faster than you might think.

Several on this forum have noted that the EB trellis is well-suited to determinates such as Celebrity (or Roma) or intermediate short node (ISI) varieties, and that they grow shorter than or about as tall as the EB trellis. 

I believe Supersweet 100 is an indeterminate (vining) tomato variety.  It can grow to 8-10 ft long and may overwhelm the EB trellis, making the box top-heavy, or the trellis unstable, or both.  Recommend you put concrete blocks against each long side of the EB to minimize tipover risk. 

[MacSmiley]

If my Gardener's Delight tomatoes are any indication, you'll definitely need the extension for your cherries. 



Click for Flickr page 


BTW, I used nylon twine to tie both "top" tubes to the outriggers of the staking system. Then I tie the twine to the top tube to the deck for stability. When we get a storm with high winds, I place all my EBs right next to the house, and tie the cherry tom box to my (top and middle) door hinges. 

[Texas.Micky]

I have managed to keep the cherry and roma plants alive to date.

Every night the weather threatens to reach 42 degrees, I move it inside.

Here are the status photos.

[tag]

Ah yes, I see you have learned the secret technique for growing tomatoes well.