Growing Tomatoes And Some other Garden Items

I have 2 major problems growing tomatoes the past few years.  First, my enclosed raised bed garden is shaded by neighbors' junk volunteer trees as they have grown larger.  Second, a sunnier spot where I've grown them for 5 years has built up levels of tomato diseases and insect pathogens that just kill them.  I'll plant corn and some other crops there for a few years.

One problem with planting them elsewhere is that tomatoes like fairly soft rich soil and I don't really have space like that elsewhere.  So I thought about planting them in the best sunlight I have.  But that's where my meadow bed is.  And tomatoes don't like competition.

So I thought of using pots.  Tomato roots need space, so 5 gallon buckets are a bit small for my large heirloom tomatoes.  I looked at small trash barrels, but they were too large and a bit expensive.  So I looked up large deck pots, which were also expensive.

I did, however, find 10 gallon "nursery pots" at only $10 each in a pack of 10 pots.  That sounds perfect!  They arrived last week.

The first thing I noticed upon opening the box were some pieces.  Sure enough, one had a broken rim.  I was quite annoyed of course.  But get this,  they sent 11 pots!  So I still had the good 10 promised.  And the broken was is still actually functional.

So...  I'll put the pots around the outer edge of the meadow bed for the best sunlight.  I'll buy a trailerload of mixed 1/2 topsoil 1/2 compost from the local nursery and grow tomatoes in it for a couple of years.  Then I'll add that soil to the raised beds.  Or I'll put plastic trash bags over them and solarize the soil.

Solarization is usually used on large flat areas, but should work on pots just as well.  It might even work better.  One warning I read is that some harmful soil insects can move deeply enough into flat soil to escape the heat.  They can't do that in a pot!

That may seem like a lot of work.  But I love heirloom tomatoes!  And once you have had a homegrown heirloom tomato (not a chilled-for-shipping store-bought) one, you will never look at grocery store tomatoes the same way.

So I am hoping for a decent tomato crop after several years of frustration.