hanging plants upside down

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Permalink Reply by Ruth on March 27, 2009 at 1:22pm

The problem I found is that you can't get enough water in them. I would have needed to water my tomato plant 4 times a day. It may work better with a smaller bush plant? Or maybe one that is well suited to a container. But even then it's hauling alot of water.

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Permalink Reply by Willow on March 29, 2009 at 11:02am

I was talking to a pro at the garden center yesterday about this. I was unwilling to pay the silly amount those upside down tomato growing things are charging, and I asked the guy if any old container with the proper sized hole in the base would work. I also asked about growing something on top (like parsley), which was part of the appeal for me.
He said, yes, you could use any hanging container provided it is large enough, and the hole isn't too big or too small, but he cautioned that the two plants would compete for soil nutrients (and the tomatoes were likely to win). He suggested growing them in a hanging basket the "normal" way, letting the plant grow over the edges and watching that the fruit does not pinch the vines when it gets heavy. He said be sure to pick the fruit as soon as it's ready to avoid pinching.

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Permalink Reply by Tam Cummings on March 29, 2009 at 11:21am

Sounds like great advice and more affordable. I was thinking a putting a geranium in the top or some marigolds. I'll have to think about that part now. Thanks for the help.

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Permalink Reply by Melissa on March 29, 2009 at 11:45am

I did this last year with tomato plants. I bought these bags from my niece's fundraiser for school that were just thick plastic bags with holes cut out on one side. I did what the instructions said, from filling the bag with a special soil-less mix, setting the small plants in and letting them get their bearings for 2 weeks before hanging. Just like Ruth said, I had to water them very many times a day and they still dried out and died. I wanted to try the topsy-turvey thing but was afraid of having the same results. Short of having a continuous drip line going in it, I don't know how you'd be able to keep it watered enough between the sun and wind. I'm going to watch this discussion. I'd love to hear from people who have used these systems sucessfully.
As far as not liking the colors of the containers, I wonder if you could wrap the container with something a little more eye-pleasing?

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Permalink Reply by Tam Cummings on March 29, 2009 at 1:33pm

I like the idea of covering over it. I am still debating to buy or not to buy them. A local store has planters on sale 30% off. They are the cocnut hanging baskets, some are extra large. I was thinking I could cut a whole in the bottom.
I live on a corner lot and have a split level house. So one part of the roof faces north and south and the other faces east and west. I was thinking I would hang the tomatoes on east side that is my front door. The plants would get morning sun and then afternoon shade. That might cut down on the worry of not enough water.

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Permalink Reply by Elizabeth Strange on March 29, 2009 at 3:09pm

I bought a topsy turvy kit and was going to try it this year with tomatoes off my deck. One way to keep it watered that I've thought about is filling a plastic water bottle and turning it upside down in the top of the bag so the water slowly goes down through the soil as is needed. Not sure how it will work out, but going to give it a try.

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Permalink Reply by Melissa on March 30, 2009 at 10:06am

Ooooh! I am anxious to know how it works out doing the bottle thing! I was just discussing it with my mom last night on the phone and that was her suggestion. We were discussing whether or not to poke holes into the bottom of the soda bottle (would be the top if it was upside down) and decided not to since the aqua globe things don't have holes. They work on a time release thing that as the water is needed it's dispensed, so I would think filliing a 2-3 liter soda bottle with water every day and inverting it should do the trick.

Please let me know how it works for you!

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Permalink Reply by Elizabeth Strange on May 28, 2009 at 5:58pm

I haven't done this yet because we've been getting so much rain -- gobs 'n gobs, that it's been unnecessary. So far my tomatoes are doing fine - some have blooms, so hopefully I'll get tomatoes.

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Permalink Reply by greg draiss on March 29, 2009 at 4:35pm

You could fashion something larger out of a plastic bucket on a pole and get more plants at a lower cost. The topsy turvy is a gimmick and yet another product made in China because the inventor is too cheap to have it made in the U.S.

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Permalink Reply by Tam Cummings on March 30, 2009 at 9:43am

We get high winds numerous times during the year, so I would worry about having something up on a pole. Also I live on a corner lot with no fence. I have to worry about what the neighbors see and think. No privacy at all, but on the plus side I do have a backyard, front yard and side yard that are big enough with enough sun to garden on all.

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Permalink Reply by Eric M on March 30, 2009 at 12:14pm

I_ tried the topsy turvy planters last year. As others have noted I spent a lot of time watering them. I also put some flowers in the holes on the sides - bad idea. The tomato plant needed all the space it could get. Sadly I had a very meager harvest - and all of the tomatoes had blossom end rot, which can be caused by inconsistent watering.

If I were to try them again I would only put one plant in the bottom and none on the sides.
I would also set up some sort of drip system to make sure it was kept consistently moist. When you've got a lot of surface leaves they suck up the water right away. I thought the container was rather small for the root mass I found when I took it apart in the fall.

The Gardener's Supply company has a version that solves these problems. It's much larger, has only one plant, and has a water reservoir on top that wicks water into the container, solving the over/under watering issues that can result in blossom end rot.
Revolution Planter

If you want to make your own you can put a deep plant saucer on top of the soil in a 6 gallon bucket. Put some felt strips in the saucer that go into the soil. The capillary action will keep the planter consistently moist.

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Permalink Reply by Lolli Goewey on April 16, 2009 at 12:31pm

I used the Topsy Turvy last year and found that using the planting medium with the water absorbers in it kept my plants watered for the day. I did have to water every day, but I also live in a very dry area. I did find that the container shredded and I will not be able to use them again this year. I did keep the parts and I like the suggestion of using a bucket. This year, I am going to try the bucket idea with cutting a hole in the bottom and installing the bottom from the topsy turvy planter. It has a ring and is lined with a cut sponge to hold the plant in place. WARNING: the planter is VERY heavy when filled and watered so make sure you have a very sturdy hanger to hang it from. This year I am going to install a pole with a heavy duty hook on it to hang the planters. I had a couple of them crash to the ground due to their weight. I got a great harvest from the tomato plants though, which is why I am going to do this again, with the bucket idea. You could probably just install the cut sponge in the bucket hole, without the "ring" of plastic. Just cement the sponge in place so it doesn't slip.

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