How to Grow Tomatoes Upside Down in a Bucket

Smaller grape tomatoes work well grown upside down.

Upside-down tomatoes in a bucket allow you to protect your plants from pests while provide you with the superior taste of homegrown fruits. 
Smaller-fruited tomatoes such as cherry or grape work better than large beefsteaks, which stress the hanging plant. Repurpose a clean 5-gallon bucket with a lid and handle, such one that contained paint or drywall compound, or buy one new.

Difficulty:

Moderately Easy

Instructions

Things You'll Need

• 5-gallon bucket with handle and lid
• Spanish moss
• Water-retaining crystals
• Soilless mix
• Drill and bit set

1. Drill a 1-inch hole in the bottom of the bucket.

2. Shake enough dirt from a tomato plant to insert the root into the hole in the bottom. Keep the plant on the outside of the bucket and the roots on the inside.

3. Wrap the roots with Spanish moss to create a nest with your tomato roots in the middle. Fill bottom of the bucket about 2 inches deep with the moss.

4. Hang the bucket from a tree limb or patio girder able to support up to 50 pounds of weight. Fill the bucket about three-quarters full with a potting mix, which is lighter than soil. Add water-retaining crystals.

5. Water the plant every day in the heat of summer.

Tips & Warnings

• If your plant is very small, put the lid on the bucket and turn the bucket over. Let the plants roots take hold before turning the bucket over. I have never had this problem!

• I recommend cherry tomatoes and smaller tomatoes like Homestead. The Big Boy tomatoes take too long to ripen and this stresses the hanging plant.

• Growing tomatoes in a bucket is addictive. My Dad has buckets all over the yard!

References

• Florida State Horticultural Society: Field Performance, Chemical Composition and Sensory Evaluation of Red and Yellow Grape Tomato Varieties
• Old Fashioned Living: Growing Tomatoes Upside Down? An Alternative Garden Plan
• OklahomaHistory.Net: My Experience Growing Tomatoes Upside Down