GrowLog
Successful

Rosy Finch Tomato in a Recycled Bottle with Food-Scrap Soil Amendments

Grow log by ERR0R1755 · Original thread

12 visual updates14 photos21 replies
View recap
CropTomato
VarietyRosy Finch Tomato
Methodsoil container growing, bottom watering
Equipment16.9-ounce plastic bottle, cut dropper used as a water inlet, water bowl
Plants1
AudienceExperimental

What you can learnAn unusual soil-bottle tomato diary testing buried food scraps, insect barriers, root recovery, and conversion from awkward top watering to bottom watering.

Actions:1 Transplant1 Planting1 Equipment1 Finished
Useful practices
  • using coco coir as a surface barrier against fungus gnats
  • layering biodegradable food materials in potting soil
  • adding a lower-bottle watering inlet
  • drilling bottom holes for short-duration bottom watering
Problems encountered
  • the transplant was initially stressed
  • installing the water inlet tore some roots
  • watering became inconvenient
  • the plant produced only one tomato

*The days were calculated automatically and approximately.

Day 82
UPDATE#12
Grower update

Update #12

Actions taken

FinishedEnded the bottle tomato project while reducing the number of plants under management.

E By ERR0R1755

Ended this today! I'm cutting back the number of plants I have since it's too much for me to manage at the moment.The plant only produced one tomato - it fell off the plant naturally but here is the plant with the tomato on top for comparison:
Conversation
S
Shawn

It reminds of me the lonely little xmas tree with the one lone red ornament on it.

S
Sher

The Charlie Brown Christmas tree.

Day 70
UPDATE#11
Grower update

Update #11

E By ERR0R1755

Conversation
S
Sher

Definitely working!

Day 62
UPDATE#10
Grower update

Update #10

E By ERR0R1755

Conversation
S
Sher

It looks like it's working!

Day 54
UPDATE#9
Grower update

Update #9

E By ERR0R1755

Conversation
E
ERR0R1755

Watering this plant has gotten to be annoying, so tonight I drilled holes in the bottom of the bottle.Now, when it needs water, I can just place it in a bowl of water and check back in 15 minutes.

Day 47
UPDATE#8
Grower update

Update #8

E By ERR0R1755

I see a tomato!
Conversation
S
Sher

Yay! Wishing you many more!

Day 40
UPDATE#7
Grower update

Update #7

E By ERR0R1755

I spy two flowers!
Day 34
UPDATE#6
Grower update

Update #6

E By ERR0R1755

I see flower buds!
Conversation
S
Sher

It looks good!

S
Shawn

Yes!

Day 27
UPDATE#5
Grower update

Update #5

E By ERR0R1755

I believe the plant has reached all three foods by now - the zucchini slice, the cucumber leaves, and the blueberry. So far I don't see any negative effects.
Day 20
UPDATE#4
Grower update

Update #4

E By ERR0R1755

Based off my iDOO grow and this one, it's definitely an AeroGarden-friendly variety, size-wise.
Day 12
UPDATE#3
Grower update

Update #3

Actions taken

EquipmentAdded a cut dropper to deliver water to the lower part of the bottle.

E By ERR0R1755

So far it is doing well! It has started to grow, and I added a cut up dropper for adding water to the lower parts of the bottle.You can see the roots spreading out nicely.
Conversation
S
Sher

It's so cute. Wishing it well!

E
ERR0R1755

I was really worried that I may have killed it or set it back when I put in that dropper / water inlet, since I definitely tore some of the roots up doing so.It's amazing how hardy tomato plants are.

Day 5
UPDATE#2
Grower update

Update #2

E By ERR0R1755

Not much of a visual change, but I can see roots growing in the bottle so I think the transplant was successful.
Day 1
UPDATE#1
Grower update

Update #1

Actions taken

TransplantPlaced a thinned Rosy Finch seedling into a recycled bottle soil container.
PlantingBuried zucchini, cucumber leaves, and a blueberry at different soil depths.

E By ERR0R1755

This is a seedling that I thinned out from my iDoo project. Seed was originally planted on March 2nd.I tried something a bit different - instead of adding liquid nutrient solution (aka AeroGarden nutrients), I used up some old "nutrients included" potting soil and added some organic materials that should break down and add nutrients. At the very bottom I put half a slice of zucchini, then around the middle I put a few shredded cucumber leaves, and near the top I added a blueberry.It's growing in a 16.9oz bottle, with my usual trick of filling the top two inches with coco coir to prevent any bug eggs in the soil from hatching and escaping.
Enlarged photoClick outside the image to close