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I imagine that growing a tomato in any pot and sterilized soil would reduce chances of ground fungus, bacteria, cutworm damage, etc. I think the one real advantage of the TT is that you wouldn't have to stake your tomatoes.

Call me a traditionalist, but I think tomaotes should grow upright.

I've actually tried growing a tomato plant in a regular hanging basket. It's producing tomatoes, but nowhere nearly as prolific as the Topsy Turvy. I think the topsy Turvey allows the plant to grow longer, stronger roots (due to the tall column of soil) that my hanging basket didn't do.

I think you are are leanneabe. I hacked an upside-down tomato grower and the plant turned out pretty weak in the end (the first one got decapitated in the wind). The long topsy-turvey tube seems almost as long as a 5 gallon bucket which is also recommended for growing tomatoes in and coincidentally also recommended as a hack for upside-down growing (if you don't mind the idea of a pickle bucket hanging from your house!).

"I think you are RIGHT leanneabe..."

i have a friend that has grown his tomatoes in upside-down, 5-gallon buckets for years now. mind you... it is not pretty, but he has some of the best backyard tomatoes that we have ever tasted.

My friends mother grows tomatoes like this (in a 5-gallon bucket) they grow just as well if not better than her in-ground tomatoes.
I don't know about mold and bacteria but it is nice if you don't have much ground space.

I made my own out of a two liter bottle. So far, the plant is still alive, so we'll see what happens!

I have never used ones, but I know when it comes to something like growing grapes if you have soil that is too "nice" the roots won't grow as deep, the plants won't be as hardy, and the wine won't be as good as plants whose roots have to struggle a bit. I can see how hanging a plant like tomatoes upside down could help the roots and ultimately the plant be healthier.

I've seen the Topsy Turvy grow amazingly well year after year. This is my first summer with using them but I saw so many hanging from balconies in the city that I am confident that I will have lots of success and lots of produce! I now live in the country, but am still going to plant 5 TTs for tomatoes, peppers, zucchini, cucumbers & strawberries. I'm really working on living green and cutting cost and I think these are going to be a great investment in our health and our budgets!
~amy
WithAmyMac.com

I have a set. I didn't get many tomatoes last year, but that was mostly because I planted them a month too late, in an area that got too much sun.

My mother, on the other hand, has grown all sorts of stuff in hers. This year, she has two different kinds of squash, peppers, and tomatoes. Realize that you can plant multiple plants in one planter - that's at least partially responsible for the advertising pictures. My mother's had the best luck growing one tomato and one other type of vegetable in each pot.

I bought three to try to grow as much food as possible in our small front yard. I have 10 tomato plants in the ground and three hanging in Topsy Turvy planters. All planted on the same day, the ones in the ground are growing MUCH more vigorously than the hanging ones, but we'll see how everything looks at the end of the summer.

Two things. 1) The plants definitely want to grow up. At first they curl upwards, but once they get a little more weight they come down. 2) Because they're in relatively narrow pots and exposed to a lot of wind, they dry out easily. This combined with the fact that they don't catch as much rainwater as in-ground or regular potted plants means I have to water them a lot more, even with all the rain we're having in DC.

This is my second year using one - I admit I was skeptical as well, but last year it was great! This year I planted the same variety in the garden and in the topsy-turvey, and the hanging plant is at least twice as big as the one in the ground.

I didn't find that it dried out too quickly - it definitely stayed moist longer than the rest of my potted plants.

I wanted a Topsy Turvy last year when I had a high porch to hang them from. My husband convinced me to try burlap bags instead ($5/bag); they were bigger and the loose weave allowed me to experiment with growing herbs out the side (cilantro worked best). I also planted peppers that way. If I'd started my plants on time, I probably would have gotten a better crop, but the dozen or so I did get were ever so wonderful. I definitely plan to to it again next year, when I have my own yard.

They used to sell those at http://www.leevalley.com/ as recently as last year, but I just checked their website and they are not available right now

I grow the TickleMe Plant (mentioned above) in my apartment in the Bronx. You don't even need direct sunlight. Bright sunlight will do. My plant is about 1 foot tall and has pink flowers. Growing a TickleMe Plant is one experience no apartment dweller should miss. My favorite item is the Greenhouse which helps keep these little TickleMe Plants warm! My kids love the video at www.TickleMePlant.com

my next door neighbor had one of these, in full sun, and he didn't get a SINGLE tomato off of it...while i have three thriving tomato plants in an earthbox (and this year, in an old kettle grill filled with dirt)--which have been relatively prolific with the same conditions.

Hey, you TickleMe plant people, why don't you just buy an ad for your product and support the website, instead of spamming up the place?

I have been growing tomatoes in one of these Topsy Turvy planters for the last 6 weeks. It is doing great!! I have at least 70 tomatoes coming in and we're early for the season. You can see a picture of my plant at http://jasonapartment.shutterfly.com/38. What's more, I never thought it would work given that I have northern exposure in an English basement front lot that only gets a couple hours of direct sun each day (the rest of my plants - beans, eggplant, peppers, squash, cucumbers - are also doing well in their containers). And best of all, I get compliments about once a week from people walking by on the street who've never seen one up close before. :-)