ratio is 10 -18-15....so far so good.. That is a much better ratio than a lawn fertilizer or 'any old thing I had laying on my shelf' fertilizer ;-) Earthbox says that you can plant 2 plants per container..but I find that this is a lil too much to meet the demands of the box.. I agree for the most part. I don't agree that one can't get great yields from healthy plants in an EB with 2 plants, but I certainly agree it's easier (less maintenance) to grow one awesome plant per box than it is two. And then theres the problem with BER..it seems a little too soil and fertilizer..regardless of what ratio you use to keep 2 plants healthy. Depends on the availability of calcium in the mix as well as other factors such as evenness of moisture and even the temperature. BER is caused by a calcium deficiency, but it isn't that simple because the reason for the calcium deficiency has to be determined. An obvious reason would be a planting mix and fertilization program that supplies inadequate calcium. Another reason would be uneven moisture levels. Plants can't take nutrients from dry soil, they take it from water. Tomatos are really sensitive to this and let the soil dry even for a short while and that can result in BER on the current fruits developing. Lack of water in this case means lack of calcium carried into the fruit via water. Even more difficult to control is the weather. Let the temps be hot and dry and the plant will lose water from it's tissue faster than it can replace it via it's roots. This will result in inadequate calcium in the plant and result in BER. The plant is taking up water as fast as it can, just not as fast as it is losing it. I love growing tomatos more than I enjoy eating them. I think the reason is that tomatos are very easy to grow OK, but incredibly difficult to grow really well consistently because of how fragile they are. They are a plant whose origin is unknown and still debated although most would place it somewhere in South America, perhaps Peru. What is more clear is it enjoyed it's evolution free of significant disease pressure and the result is that no variety today has any significant resistance to fusarium or verticillium or any other disease. Despite the best efforts of hybridizers only modest improvements to disease have been made and these often sacrifice flavor as a trade off. Very easy to grow, very difficult to grow well consistently. Love 'em. Screw it up and you still probably have enough for a few BLTs and do it really well and you have enough for making pasta sauce.

When I first got my starter Earth Boxes, I got them from Whole Foods for $59 each. When I recently bought seeds from Gurny's, there was an offer from Earthbox directly that sold the boxes for $37 for one (including shipping). Discount is 3 for $110, 5 for $175, and 10 for $344. obviously the more you buy, the bigger the discount. Call 1-888-588-5897 I wish I can be an industrious as others who make their own but I am already being a renegade in New York City by gardening on my balcony. (i hear that I am one of the few who veggie garden in my building. I need to maximize my yield with little space so the Earthbox option is the best one for me. So far, I am learning to be a better gardener and have higher yields every year. My first year was dismal b/c I didn't know what I was doing. Now I use seeds, start my plants in a greenhouse rack, and use self watering containers. Hopefully I will have more happy news to report at the end of summer.

1. YouÂll need to make a personal decision on using PVC pipe for your watering tube, our drinking water comes from PVC pipe, so I donÂt worry about this. 2. Any place that sells food is a great place to get food safe 5-gallon bucketsÂRestaurant, supermarket deli dept, bakeries, etc. 3. EG at Our Engineered Garden has a great tutorial on his old blog. I have these bookmarked and will be building a few of my own soon: EGÂs Self Watering Planters: Part 1 EGÂs Self Watering Planters: Part 2 EGÂs Self Watering Planters: Part 3 Here is a link to Garden Web member, Joe (aka jmalt31) Self Watering Container Instructions . You can learn a lot about how these work from fellow GardenWeb member, Ray Newstead (aka rnewste/Raybo) creater of "EarthTainer" self-watering design. Do a search on "rnewste/Raybo" right here on GardenWeb to read through his posts. RayÂs EarthTainer instructions can be downloaded here. I hope these help. What are you planning on planting in your SWC? Rachel GrafixMuse's Garden Spot

Hi there, and thanks for the responses. I was thinking of using lime for my grass below a spruce tree. I have read that spruce needles alter the pH downwards, and that lime would be a useful amendment to counteract the acidity of the spruce needles. Does anyone have any experience with this? I will try the stores you suggested, much thanks!