Usually, you think of plants as development up from the soil. That doesn’t have to be the case, however. You can turn your garden topsy turvy and grow plants which normally grow upwards from the soil by hanging them down from a planter. This is especially handy for the urban gardener wherever footling gardening space is available.

 

You’ll be really astounded if you grow tomatoes the topsy turvy way. Instead of hanging downward, the fruit will turn upward to gather the sun, creating a very beautiful display.

 

A great plant to grow upside down is the patio tomato or cherry tomato. Peppers such as jalapeño, cayenne, and Tabasco, or any plant which produces small fruit on established limbs and branches will work great. Green bell peppers do not work well because the weight of the large peppers tends to break the branches before the pepper is matured. always select varieties which are suitable for container gardening for your topsy turvy gardening efforts. Green herbs such as basil, oregano and sage are also great to grow for vertical gardening

 

There are many garden enthusiests who have practiced the vertical gardening method obtain better production yield than produced by the same varieties when planted in the ground. Perhaps this can be attributed to the fact that there is less stress on the branches and much better circulation of air.

 

The concept of topsy turvy gardening is really simple. This growing method works best using seedlings, whether you grew them from seeds or purchased them already growing. Rather than planting seedlings into prepared soil in the ground, the plants are planted in buckets or hanging baskets pointing downward. Common plastic five gallon buckets with plastic handles work really well for this type of gardening. You can also use large plastic pots with suitable sized holes in the bottom. If you elect to use large clay pots, you may find it arduous to prepare the pot bottom and the weight is significantly greater, requiring a much stronger hanger and plant hook to backing the planter.

 

The perfect scenario is to have a vertical planter that already had a handle but you can connect plant hangers if necessary to support the planter from your plant hanger. Five gallon plastic buckets can ofttimes be obtained at no charge from restaurants because these businesses purchase products such as bulk condiments, prepared coleslaw and potato salad in these containers. Frequently, once they are emptied, the food service business discards the buckets, resulting in more and more plastic filling our landfills. Simply as a restaurant you frequent if you can have some empty containers and will be very happy that you will take there waste away

 

Clean your plastic container very well to remove any leftover debris or food . If using a large plastic pot, clean it will if it has been used previously. If it is brand-new, you can easily run water through a pot to remove any dust or dirt collected while stored in the garden center or outlet.

 

Planter formulation

 

Before planting, you will need to properly prepare your planter. Because the plant will be hanging down from the bottom, you will need to drill or cut a hole in the bottom of the bucket of distend the drainage hole in the plastic pot. In most cases, plastic buckets have a circular indentation in the bottom which is about two to two and one-half inches in diameter. Use this as a guide for creating your hole. You want to create a hole between two and three inches in size. This hole will be the orifice from which the plant hangs and grows.

 

Planting Your Upside Down Planter

 

Place the bucket or pot right side up with the hole pointing down between two objects such as boards in order to expose the hole but support the planter. If the stem root bundle is smaller than the hole, place a small unbent of cheese cloth or other porous cloth, sphagnum moss, coffee filters, or newspaper in the bottom and cut an opening through which the plant can extend.

 

Very gently Pace the seedling leaves and stems down through the opening, or if the root bundle is small, pass it up through the hole and wrap the cloth, moss, coffee filter, or newspaper near it for support. Hold the seedling so that two inches of the stem extends from the bottom of the planter.

 

While continuing to support the seedling in place, pack potting soil around the stem in order to anchor the plant and ensure it will not slide out of the opening . While continuing to hold the seedling in spot, continue to add soil to the bucket, packing it unwaveringly. Once you have added enough soil to support the seedling properly, you can release the plant. Continue to add soil until the planter or bucket is about an inch or two above the root bundle. On top of this soil, add a bed of compost, about one inch deep. Then fill the hanging planter the rest of the way with soil, stopping about one inch from the top of the planter.

 

Hanging the Planter

Install a sturdy hook from which to hang your planter. Because a five gallon bucket of soil can be quite heavy when we t, It is better to use a strong sturdy hook rather than taking a chance and erroring on the weaker side and finish up having your plant hook fall out of the support.

Hang the plastic bucket from the committed handle. If using a pot, place a top-edge hanging system on the top so that nothing constricts the pot bottom or interferes with the growing plant. String plant hangers unfortunately are not going to work because they have a huge knot at the bottom that will damage the plant.

Water the plant well. You will know you have enough water when water begins reeking from the bottom hole shortly after watering. After watering, check the level of the soil to ensure it hasn’t settled more than two inches from the top of the planter. Add more soil if necessary.

I you can use a lid for the container , you can place it loosely on the top of the planter, but do not seal. This can prevent moisture loss and extend periods between watering. If you have no lid or are using a pot, be certain you water frequently enough to keep the soil moist. Check the soil as much as you can to make sure the soil level has not lowered and, if needed, add more soil to the top of the planter.

 

Using this method of vertical gardening to grow your tomatoes and vegetables is fun for the whole family. You will be sure to love watching the fruits of you labor as your upside down garden grows with giving you a array of beautiful,healthy vegetables to share with your family and friends.