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For the past 2 years I have been growing tomatoes in those fugly Topsy Turvy planters. Sure they are ugly, but I don’t have a lot of space and I love a lot of tomatoes and they actually do grow great tomatoes. Last year I hung three on the southwest corner of my garage and no one even noticed the crappy green ivy design because of all the cherry and grape toms dangling from below. There were a few factors that made it a success for me and I’ve listed that all here.
This year I decided to try a strawberry planter because let’s face it, who wouldn’t want delicious fresh strawberries growing off their garage? I had a bunch of strawberry runners over at my community garden plot and I found this handy “Flower Tower” at Value Village for few bucks. You can buy Topsy Turvey ones with the same general idea, or I can assume that cutting some holes in a bucket would really yield the same results. I filled the planter with garden soil, tucked in the runners, and voila – a hanging strawberry planter.
For now the biggest challenge has been to water it without the soil running through the holes. But as it compacts a little, it seems to be holding better. I’ve got about 36 plants in there so lets hope for a good harvest. If this works it may be the only way I grow strawberries again! Here are a few hanging container products if you want to start your own:
Great idea. I’ve got my strawberries in rectangular containers. It just doesn’t feel right to have them in the ground, probably because I have no ground left for them and even if I did the slugs are always on the prowl. I hope you’ll keep us posted on your harvest.
You look like you have June bearing strawberry plants because your plants have a lot of runners. Normally day neutral strawberries don’t have many runners. (day neutral strawberries give a long steady harvest period from start to frost June bearing just give one harvest a year)If your plants don’t fruit or only fruit once you will have to plant them in the ground and buy day neutral strawberries to plant in your hanging basket
Hi Nick, I’m sure they are June bearing and I have fruit starting already! I have plenty of flowers and many little nobby green strawberries all over the planter. I planned to harvest those suckers in June, and then plant an upside down tomato in it’s spot. Space is precious here so no one plant get’s a space all to itself :)
I started growing my strawberries in containers because of racoons always eating them. I find strawberries grow much better in a controlled environment as well.
I live in Northern Alberta and I have hanging strawberries in hanging flower baskets on my patio. They are very productive and I have been harvesting strawberries since late June. My plants are sending out runners. Should I pinch these off or leave them?
I would let them grow so that you have berries cascading over the edges of the planter. I’ve seen them this way – almost 6 feet of berries – and they look beautiful! Just keep it well watered and some fertilizer wouldn’t hurt.