I realize this is a ~3 year old thread, but thought I'd add some of my experiences with the topsy-turvy. I should point out that this is my first time to try topsy-turvy. Don't think I'll use them again. I had 8 of them with several different tomato varieties. 3 of the plants completely broke off at the stem. Of the 5 that are left, 2 are doing pretty well, 2 are doing mediocre, and one is appears almost dead. I'd say a 25% success rate is lousy considering I take immaculate care of them. Some specific problems: 1. The marketing makes it sound like using these are so simple. I disagree. The lids are a royal pain with how they fit with the hanging wires. And, the soil washes through the planter over time and when you have to add more soil, it takes a big effort to get them down and refill without harming the existing plant. 2. Tomatoes are phototropic (I think that's the right term). The plants want to grow up toward the sun, and they grow up and bunch up around the bottom of the planter. As the vine gets heavier, it puts more stress on the vine and main stem as they start bending down from the weight. 3. Probably most importantly, the slit where the stem comes out of the planter really seems to take a toll on the stem. 3a. The water runs down out of the planter slowly and tends to collect on the stem causing noticeable rot and mold issues. The stem tends to be shaded right up under the planter and doesn't dry well. 3b. The weight of the soil seems to cause the foam slit to push in around the stem. As I stated above, I've had 3 completely break off at the stem. On a couple of the others, you can clearly tell the stem development has been pinched by the foam. I put 4 other plants in the ground and so far so good. Staking and caging is MUCH easier than dealing with the topsy-turvy. Of course, your mileage may vary. Best of luck, Greg

Here's what my son said about the. He lives in South Philly and has no yard. I had a mixed success with the Topsy Turveys. I definitely preferred having the upside-down tomatoes vs. tomatoes in containers. But if I had a yard, there would be no question that I would just put the tomatoes in the ground!!! However, if you do use the Topsy Turveys, make sure you have a good place to hang them! Pros- Saves space, easy to water and keep moist (vs. containers), bore a lot of fruit Cons- after a while, it is necessary to tie up the vines, or else they flop over from the weight of the fruit. it might be better to use cherry or plum tomatoes. Also, I found it difficult to do the initial setup (filling bags up with dirt and trying to insert the small plants in the upside down hole). Hope this helps!

I planted one last year on a lark. A few observations: You will get tomatoes, but they will be small; the planter needs to be somewhere that can handle lots of muddy water dripping from it; You'll have to water at least daily and sometimes more often depending on how hot it gets in your area; You will have to feed the plants more than those in the ground. After giving it a try, I won't be doing it again. It was a complete waste of time.

Determinent refers to tomatoes that mature at the same time. They're usually sauce type tomatoes ie Romas. Indeterminent are the rest of the bunch which mature whenever their ripe IE the whole season. Not ever done the topsty thing myself.