Hanging Tomato Plants - Pros and Cons of Hanging Tomatoes

Many people want to be a gardener but live in a place where they can't have a garden. Hanging tomato plants are a popular way for many people to have a tomato garden even in an apartment on a patio, or in a townhouse. Here's a look at the pros and cons of hanging tomato plants.

One of the biggest advantages of hanging tomatoes is the small amount of space needed. There's no real floor space taken up, so a balcony or patio works fine for these. But there are even advantages from the tomatoes point of view as well. Most of these advantages apply to both upside down tomatoes and traditional hanging upside-down-tomato-planter-review tomato planters or even a freestanding planter like the upside down tomato garden.

Early Tomatoes - Hanging planters can warm faster than soil in the ground which can be a factor in obtaining tomatoes 2-4 weeks earlier than those put in ground soil.

Very Few Weeds - By using a potting soil or a soilless mix there will be few native weed seeds to suppress. If you do get a few strays, it is easy to just remove them in the small surface area a hanging pot provides.

Soil Borne Diseases - Once again, because of the soil choices, you can significantly cut down on the incidence of soil borne diseases on your plants. In addition, one way these infect the tomatoes is by the soil splashing up on the plants when they are watered. This is less likely with the plant hanging below the soil in the planter. Finally, the plants don't sprawl on the ground, but are hanging in the air, so there is better air circulation around the tomatoes as well.

No Tomato Cages or Stakes - Goes without saying, the plants simply hang down, and you don't have to wrestle with the whole support system of a cage or staking and tying.

Ease of Pruning - Much simpler tomato pruning with the tomato hanging down, especially when you don't have to tie the plants off.

Heavy to Hang - There is a lot of dirt in one of these planters. And after you add water they can get too heavy to carry or put up on a hanger. The best advice is to put just some of the soil in the bottom, hang the planter, and then add the remaining soil and then water thoroughly. If that's still too much weight, a great alternative is the upside down tomato garden, which is free standing and sits on the ground but still lets the tomatoes hang in the air, it's just not as high.

Watering - The size of the container has to be relatively small in order to be light enough to carry and hang. This means the root system is going to be smaller than a tomato plant that is in the ground. Add in the fact that the root system is exposed to evaporation on several sides, and the end result is that in warmer summer months there are times you may need to water daily to keep a hanging tomato plant going. A watering wand makes this process much easier.

Size of plants- One of the most common complaints is that the hanging tomatoes won't make it through the summer. The reality is that the smaller root system won't support a sprawling large tomato plant when it's really warm. In my experience, the best solution is to choose a variety specifically for planters or a smaller determinant variety. This is obviously ideal when growing tomatoes on a balcony or patio.

Overall, we think that many gardeners will find that hanging tomato planters make a great addition to the tools they have to producing the best tomato crop they've had in years.