Weekend Update: Topsy Turvy Tomato Planter...Final Farewell

Well, it's officially time to bid farewell to our dear Topsy Turvy Tomato Planter.  It had a good run (well not really), but I have had to face reality that growing tomatoes when the heat index has hit 108 degrees is just silly.  We had some highs and lows (okay, I guess mainly lows since I never saw an actual tomato), and I have to give my official report. The Topsy Turvy Tomato Planter has officially failed.  However, I cannot really blame this on the Topsy Turvy completely.  It  was a little unreasonable for me to try and get these going in mid May in Houston.  I am going to give this sucker another chance next spring because I think that is fair.  So in review, I will share what I learned.  In this region of Texas, you must plant tomatoes by late March or early April.  I also learned that the yellow flowers are the beginnings of tomatoes if they just have enough cool air and water to stay alive.  Thanks for following the journey and we will see this tike next spring!  

Weekend Update: Topsy Turvy Tomato Planter...Week 7

And so I continue my Topsy Turvy report.  I have to admit it's getting hard for me to keep up the enthusiasm about this darn thing.  There is no real new news.  The leaves continue to grow and I continue to get yellow flowers, but that is as far as it goes.  The yellow flowers soon wilt.  To add on to my discouragement, anyone who has had success growing anything in Houston has assured me it is too hot for the survival of tomatoes.  Guess these suckers just can't take the heat in our 104 degree afternoons.  I will continue on for another week or two just to give it a good try.  And no matter what happens, I will retry the topsy turvy next year before the melting summer begins.  So stay tuned for a few more weeks!!

More promising blooms...

...and more dead ones!

Weekend Update: Topsy Turvy Tomato Planter...Week 6

Here we are in Week 6 of the Topsy Turvy Tomato Planter experiment.  And if you caught last week's post , this little tike had taken a turn for the worst.  However, (drumroll.........) there is still hope! We now have a whole new set of little flower bulbs providing a glimmer of light at the end of the tunnel.  I will not be proud this time or talk about my "abundant crop on its way" until I have taken a big juicy bite out of my first harvest (novel thought, I know). 

So on to the changes I have observed... The back part of the plant that really doesn't see sunlight, has shriveled up completely.  The front leaves seem to be growing towards the sun and just yesterday, the leaves fell.  I am hoping that the weight of all those baby tomatoes is what caused this. I will have to say the ups and downs of this experiment are downright exhausting, but I will continue!  So stay tuned! Oh, and just when you thought the ambiance couldn't get any worse, it did.  

Our new neighbors have decided to leave their garages open so the new background of this experiment will be the inside of lovely sheds.  

Hope for a future...

Weekend Update: Topsy Turvy Tomato Planter...Week 5

Failure, disappointment, shame, with a sliver of hope sprinkled on top...the emotions I am feeling as I post this update.  How could I come so far since my last joyous Saturday post you ask?  Remember those yellow flowers I boasted about last week, and how I was sure I was on the brink of a tomato explosion? Gone, gone... gone.  When I sauntered out one morning to water my precious little plant, I could tell from afar that the bright yellow flowers that once were did not look so hot.  As I got closer, I could see they were a tad shriveled up.  Before I really thought through what i should do, I decided to poke one.  It took my breath away as I watched the entire shriveled up bulb float to the concrete. 

After looking around to see if anyone in the neighborhood witnessed my murder, I decided to douse the sweet plant in water in hopes of the other two springing back to life.  Well, this was on Thursday and I have seen no springage thus far.  I will say that the sliver of hope I reported comes from the fact that it appears I have some other flowers on the way.  However, (knock on wood) I will not be reporting too much on these until there is actually some fruit.  I feel as if I jinxed the last ones.  So keep this little tike in your thoughts and prayers and maybe it will pull through.  If you have a green thumb, then I beg you to share your tips and tricks with a comment.  Thank you.  Until next week...

shameful...

R.I.P. little bulb...

Weekend Update: Topsy Turvy Tomato Planter... Week 4

Well, I don't want to get my hopes up, but it looks as if we have the starts of 3 tomatoes!  I can hardly believe it! It's a good thing I consulted my green thumb friends when I saw these little flowers.  My limited gardening knowledge would have led me to rip these little puppies off.  When you see little flowers on herbs, you are suppose to remove them because they are not good for the herbs.  However, I now know that with tomatoes, this is the start of actual tomatoes! Phew, that was close.  Anyway, we have the beginning of something here so hopefully these posts will get a little more interesting in the next few weeks.  Cross you fingers!

 

Yay!

Weekend Update: Topsy Turvy Tomato Planter... Week 3

Here we are in Week 3 of the Topsy Turvy Tomato Planter.  I am still filled with lots of hope, but must report I see no signs of even the tiniest tomatoes.  I guess I am staying optimistic because the directions do report that it takes 6 weeks to see tomatoes.  All I know is we have a long way to go if this little tike is going to look anything like that tomato explosion on the infomercials.  Stay tuned!

Weekend Update: Topsy Turvy Tomato Planter... Week 2

 

So here is my Topsy Turvy Tomato Planter at Week 2.  If this is the first time you have seen this post, I will be tracking the Topsy Turvy Tomato planter to see if it really lives up to what its infomercial claims... up to 30 lbs. of tomatoes this summer. Compared to week 1, I haven't seen too much progress.  The leaves are a little bushier, which I think is all I can hope for at this point.  I noticed a few holes in some of the leaves from little pests so I doused it with organic bug repellent.  Other than that, just been watering about a gallon a day.  Stay Tuned!

Topsy Turvy Tomato Planter... Follow my experiment!

I know I know, this is one of the ugliest things you could invite into your backyard (however, when all you have is a concrete slab and a dirty shed as a backyard, you are really not killing any ambiance).  If you have somehow missed the infomercials on this product, it is the Topsy Turvy Tomato Planter.  It is a way to grow tomatoes upside down, and if this little contraption delivers what it advertises, I could yield up to thirty pounds of tomatoes this summer.  So I invite you on my journey to find out if this really works!  I will share my progress every Saturday in my new post, "Weekend Update: Topsy Turvy Tomato Planter." Disclaimer: I do live in Houston, Texas where you can fry an egg on the street starting in early April so take note of that uncontrollable element as we watch this little thing do it's magic.  Stay Tuned!