Hiya chums I've seen these mentioned a few times, so to save me trawling I thought I'd start a thread to pool opinion. Having looked at reviews, the general claim is that they can produce twice as many Tomatoes as compared to those grown in pots. Thing is, I normally grow in the greenhouse border, so has anyone tried both methods to grow Tomatoes? Are 11 litre pots really big enough when compared to a greenhouse border? Cheers...Freddy
Given that the 11L pot is filled with compost, the only real difference is the capilliary mat/wick that draws water from the reservoir. If you are a haphazard waterer, it might equate to twice the yield cos a full grown tom in an 11L pot would need a good soaking at least 3x a day
Going off what Hex states . Would using a plastic storage container as the reservoir . Then have 4 x £1 buckets (about 12 litres each) mounted above it with some wicking material through them . It won't look as pretty but it will only cost around £10 .
I think the thing with these, is that the reservoir has a purpose built lid, that keeps out light so that there's no algae or evaporation. I suppose I could knock up something along the same lines, but the question remains, can these compare to growing in the greenhouse border?
Hi Freddy, I've used an Octogrow (double size Quadgrow) for about 4 years now. It's great for when I go away for a week or so as the Holiday Watering Kit attachment keeps the reservoir topped up. Fill it and forget. Also the nutrients pack make it simple. I've found no difference in size/taste between growing in the Quadgrow compared to the greenhouse border. You have to change the soil in the greenhouse border every year to stop pest/disease build up and the Octogrow is less hassle in this respect too. The main disadvantage is the raised height, the reservoir is about 12" high then the pots on top of that add another 18" so by the time the first truss forms it's half way up the greenhouse already. Compared to planting in the border you're losing a couple of trusses height wise, so maybe yield is a bit down towards the end of the season as I run out of space. This year I'm not using my system as I've gone for TomTatoes and the 11 litre pot on the Quadgrow is not big enough for a potato crop. Last year I sunk 42 litre pots in the greenhouse border for TomTatoes, this year I'm using the double gro-bag method (to save me changing the border soil). I recall @OxfordNick has an Quadgrow system too, it would be interesting to get his view.
Hiya John Thanks for that, some good info in your post. I didn't realise they were so high once stacked, 30" in all. That's a lot of height to lose. I suppose I could mitigate by digging out the border, but that might make the greenhouse a dangerous place to visit. I also use one side of the greenhouse to house my heated propagated, sat on one of those drop-down stagings until planting time. I know it's not best practice, but I tend to only change the border soil once every two years with no apparent problems, so for now, I'll stick with that.
They work well for me - two advantages are that I dont have a lot of space, so having something I can move in for the summer growing season & then breakdown & store for Winter so I can bring pots in to the space quickly is a big plus + I dont have a lot of daylight time left in the week after working / travelling so having something I can fill up every three or four days & that doesnt need mains water is ideal. The loss of space is the biggest drawback - I do try to get the vines growing up to the roof & then across to get the most fruiting trusses, that works better with the small cherry types than the big fruits, as they take so long to mature Ive normally walked into them & knocked them off before they are ready. I didnt have much luck with the automated watering kits - the basic principle is sound but my water is so hard the floats get gunked up pretty quickly & its more trouble that its worth for me. I cant really speak to quantity / quality of the results - certainly I get lots of fruit: -- -- I do think that the big fruit can be a bit watery but that might just be their nature - This year Im trying to grow the same varieties outside as in the greenhouse to get a comparison. Im also trying Cucumbers & Aubergines this year & they seem to be doing well.. possibly too well.. they already have their roots down into the reservoir so theres every chance that they will grow into monsters ! Forgot to add that they are doing a trial of various self watering / feeding systems on Beechgrove Garden this year & they have a quadgrow in the mix.
Nick, you can improve the taste by switching to a dedicated tomato feed from the 4th true leaf onwards. The npk ratio and nutrient strength makes a big difference to the quality of the fruit.
Interesting - thanks - Ive found in the past that I start feeding too early & so get a huge jungle but it takes an age for the first fruit to set so this year I was holding off on any feeding until I get the first fruit. We shall see :-)
Hi Nick, If you can, try to increase just the N,K and Ca at the 4th true leaf. Toms stockpile potassium (K) in fairly large quantities prior to flowering so they have enough to go at when the times comes. If the supply is limited they tend to wait around and use the time to generate more greenery. You can supplement a general purpose fertiliser with calcium nitrate, potassium nitrate and/or potassium sulphate to increase the N,K and Ca without affecting the rest.