Tomato ring culture

I used this method in the early eighties for a few years - plants and fruit grew very successfully but I thought the fruit was not as tasty as when grown in soil (maybe I missed out trace nutrients??).

I used a gravel tray about 3 inches deep.

It is a similar method to commercial hydroponic growers and I always think supermarket toms are tasteless as well !!

I use an adapted method by using a bottomless bucket going into a traditional growbag. I start the tomato off in the growbag with the pot in place. as the tomato grows I add compost to the pot, a bit like earthing up potatoes. As you fill in the pot so the tomato plant grows extra roots out of the covered stem. That way you get a stronger plant with added root growth which will support bigger and more tomatoes. Works for me.

Ian

Thanks for the replies, thats very interesting about the lack of taste, am thinking that the bottomless bucket in the growbag might be the way to go - was mainly worried about the growbags just not being deep enough but that sounds ideal!

You can double up on growbags if you can afford it. Double decker them. It supposedly improves yield as well.

I too tried ring culture many years ago and had no success, but whether this was the ring method or the growing medium I really don't know. I have also tried grow bags but don't like them - I don't think that there is really enough room for 3 'fully-fledged' tomato plants in each one. For many years now I have grown the tomatoes (sorry - that should be 'my wife has grown the tomatoes') in John Innes No. 3 in 10" pots. Works well.

I never heard of this method, it sounds interesting but...


...planko alert: is there any soil or compost in the bottomless pot or bucket? Sorry if I'm misreading.

If I remember correctly, back in the day there were whale hide (or similar plastic) floppy rings avaliable to buy. They were about 6 inches tall and 6 inches in diameter.

You grew the plant in 3 or 3.5 inch pots as normal until it was around 9 inches tall and getting ready to flower and be planted on.

The plant and all its compost from the 3 inch pot sat at the bottom of the empty ring and normal compost was added around it and up the plant stem as you would in a container when you plant deeply, but no compost went under the original plant compost.

You water the compost normally for the first few weeks (very little water though) and the plant will live on these roots but also put its main feeding/drinking roots down into the wet gravel.

Top up the ring with compost as you would normally as the plant grows since roots live here as well, and keep this compost damp, but don't water the plant through it or compost will wash into the gravel water.

Keep the gravel full of water and tomato feed (plus any trace elements you fancy) - if the gravel is deep it can prevent drying out when you are on holiday (I never got blossom end rot!!!). Don't over or under feed!!!!

I found it a very simple method but was unsure of the flavour - I may have been to blame through lack of nutrients - which I decided was due to the fruits growing too quickly with all the water freely available... suck up loads of water quickly equals watery fruit!!!! My opinion only!!!!

I'm going to try container growing and the "ring on a grow bag technique" this year - if only I had a greenhouse big enough to test ring culture against them!!!!

I was just browsing for ring culture pots, but they are so expensive Ring Culture - Growbag pot - A set of 3 growbag pots

I think I'll just set some bottomless Morrisons buckets in a grow bag - is that the right idea, Snadger?

Ring culture is based on the fine feeding roots being in the pot whereas the water is absorbed from the gravel base outside the pot by the stronger water absorbing roots.
My greenhouse soil was 'tired' after continuous growing in the bedsoil for a number of years.
This year I just grew in florists buckets with loads of holes in the bottom placed on the bedsoil so that only water was absorbed from the bedsoil and not nutrients.
This year I will spread a couple of inches of pea gravel directly on top of the bedsoil and use florists buckets again.
This is basically the same as ring culture, seperating the feeding roots (in the pot or ring) from the water finding roots.
It worked well for me last year and all I will be doing is tidying it up a bit and applying a pea gravel, water retaining mulch!

We used to use ring culture in the late 60's prior to using growbags. It is a good system to use as is growbags, if you have poor soil or are resting the soil. We used to use large whale-hide pots, concrete pots or thin plastic pots.
A trough filled with gravel was made using a wide piece of plastic, supported on small wooden posts down both sides of the trough, and running a string the length of the trough.The plastic was folded over the string so that the two outer edges were on the inside of the bottom of the trough, which was then filled with gravel about 6 inches deep.
We watered with drip irrigation directly into the pot, and the excess water drained into the gravel giving a reserve of nutrients. This system is slightly better than just plain grow bags, which required watering a few times a day so they do not dry out. However, as with grow bags you need to add tomato feed at every watering, as there is no real reserve of nutrients like there is in the soil, apart from the slow release ones that are put in when the compost is made.
You could also use a mix of gravel and compost in the trough.
The trough is really a mini raised bed.
Give the troughs a good soaking out at the end of the season, and put new compost into the pots.
Good luck, it is a very good system.
Mr TK.

Think I might try the full ring culture thing this year as the theory sound like a winner and the plants should never be lacking for water. I usually do the bottomless pots into a grow bag and have good results with this method. Am hoping to get a new greenhouse before the season gets fully underway.

Ian