Grow bags or no grow bags ?

[ioan]

Hi
love this topic.
l am not a lover of growbags, but it needs to be said there are grow bags and growbags these days depending on price etc
However it's not wise to have a stand off with gramps, l think you should do a deal and try both methods.
And come back and tell us who got it right!!!!
My money is on grampa, cos I think l know where he's coming from.
best of luck to you both.
kind reg
ioan

[noviceveggrower]

Hi, I must agree with what everyone else says about grow bags. I found in the past that they dry out very quickly and you get all the creepy crawlies living underneath them.

[Penellype]

Is that the hozelock growbag waterer Pene? My local GC have an offer on, one of these plus a free tomorite planter for £20. I was thinking of trying one for my toms......

I can't speak from experience as prior to this year with my allotment I've been a purely windowsill gardener but an article in another magazine (I won't name it) a few months ago did a trial - tomatoes grown in a) growbags, b) pots, c) the ground and different watering regimes (I think every day, every third day and once a week). The result was that all 3 watering regimes when used with the growbag was better than the other two methods with any regime.

Yes, Hozelock growbag waterer. It is possible that it is user error, in particular the floor of the greenhouse is not flat (its tarmac chippings). I found the growbag nearly impossible to get onto the spikes, I found that the spikes were too tall for the bag, meaning that when I had finally got the bag pushed onto them they pushed the plastic up higher than the compost. I found it impossible to get the bag evenly filled as the antics I had to perform to get the spikes through the plastic meant most of the compost ended up at one end of the bag and I had to try to manipulate it to get it anywhere near even.

You may be more competent at this sort of thing than I am and you may have some help - another pair of hands would have been very useful. Also, once the thing is set up its too heavy to move, which means that you are almost inevitably struggling with it in a confined and awkward place.

On the plus side, I have only had to refill the water reservoir about once a week, and the lettuces which did grow are the best I have ever managed.

[spamvindaloo]

Thank you. I think I might have a trial with a couple of tomato plants.....

[chefgage]

I use growbags on their sides. I have a few of them holders that stand the growbag on its side so the roots have the width of the bag converted to its depth (if that makes sense!!). I find this works alot better and makes watering easier.

[Jonnyt]

Funny enough I'm testing this out this year:
6 Plants in Growbags plus the plastic waterer's / deepeners
6 Plants in 17L Potato bags with Manure and Compost

I've got three trusses set on a Sungold in the 17L pots so looking very promising

[KairdiffKid]

Thanks guys. You made me laugh today. I remember I saw a grow bag and on it where pic of veg including carrots. Lol I would love see some L shape carrots in there.

Ah you stand 'em up length ways you see, that way you get 1m+ long carrots

[spamvindaloo]

Thank you. I think I might have a trial with a couple of tomato plants.....

So far the growbag waterer isn't producing fruit. The plants are much bigger than my potted tomatoes but my potted tomatoes have fruited. The plants in the growbag waterer have loads of vegetative growth but only just starting to flower now.

Don't know if this is a consequence of the continual watering or perhaps the tomorite growbag. It may end up producing more tomatoes in the end so it will be interesting to see.

[susieq100]

I use growbags but only in as much as I empty their contents into big pots! I put well rotted manure in the bottom and mix with MPC. Agree with everything that has been said about the bags being too shallow and prone to slugs and drying out. And I have to feed regularly too - but having said all that, the results are worth it! I use pots in the greenhouse at home as that has a gravel/paving stone floor but in the 'glass shed' at the allotment I have cukes and toms planted into the ground. Deep trench filled with a mixture of manure, compost and soil. They seem happy enough.

[Penellype]

So far the growbag waterer isn't producing fruit. The plants are much bigger than my potted tomatoes but my potted tomatoes have fruited. The plants in the growbag waterer have loads of vegetative growth but only just starting to flower now.

Don't know if this is a consequence of the continual watering or perhaps the tomorite growbag. It may end up producing more tomatoes in the end so it will be interesting to see.

Very interesting. I'm using my water reservoir for melons but they are not in a growbag, they are in growbag compost in 10 litre pots with capillary matting wicks, balanced on a mesh shelf covered with the growbag plastic with slits in for the wicks. The melon plants are producing plenty of growth, but so far although there are flowers, nothing appears to have set fruit. This may be due to the cold weather - I have not grown melons before.

[pandasyard]

I read about using grow bags and how they are prone to drying out fast and the solution was to put bottomless pots on the top and fill with a bit more MPC and then plant in to that, this should then retain more moisture. I will try grow bags next year for toms as I have never used them before (I haven't used much to be honest)