why not put the containers in the sunny location?

~~~ why not put the containers in the sunny location? ~~~

Exactly and next year plan on a raised bed.

Good sun is far more important than good soil, anyday.

You can always feed your plant with nutrient but there is no substitute for ample sunshine.

I plant all my toms on a west facing covered balcony so they only get about 4 hours of good sun per day and they do just fine.

Cut the bottoms out of your containers, and use them for your tomato "raised bed" this year!

Seriously, I have several things growing in 5-gallon buckets with the bottoms cut out and placed directly over this red Georgia clay, no tilling, no soil additions. The containers are filled with ProMix BX "growing medium", and the roots eventually burrow down into the clay. Clay soils are very nutrient-laden, and as long as the soil is kept moist, tomato roots can happily make their way down into them from an open-bottomed container. I found that it helps to mulch around the container as well as on top of the soil in the container.

But for the time being, I agree that your plants will do MUCH better in direct sun than with less sun. Put your containers out there and make sure to keep them watered. If your containers are dark-colored, you should probably surround them with something light-colored, or paint them a light color. The heat of the sun on dark-colored containers can kill the roots and plants.

Soil has a big impact on flavor.
Sun has a big impact on productivity.

That being said, I agree with putting the pots in the
sunny location.

I have maters in 3 spots in my garden which get sun in the following order from less to more:

1. In raised beds in the main garden.
2. In pots on the deck.
3. In post on the south side of the house.

The #3 plants are by far doing the best.... even in their black containers.....

Lee

Thanks for all the advice! I think I know what to do now.

Tomato plants cannot grow unless they make energy compounds needed to synthsize all parts of the plant plus all other activities such as blossom formation, fruit set and maturation of fruit.

Those energy compounds are made by photosynthesis and sunlight is needed for photosynthesis.

You can amend dirt to provide for adequate root uptake of nutrients, but you have no substitute for sunlight when growing outside.

Carolyn

heck you dont need dirt at all :) it just takes a whole lot more fertilizer to grow without it...

good quality water is WAY more important than the growing substrate. you could grow in a bag of sawdust if you really wanted to.

To me this question is like asking which is more important to human life? Water or food? We need BOTH. Sure we may be able to live awhile longer without the one over the other but that quality of life would be survival mode rather than healthy, prosperous mode.

What's the point of having a tomato that is struggling from lack of either important component for optimal growth and tomato production?

My vote is for an excellent growing medium in the largest pot the OP can afford placed in the brightest sunlight possible with a good watering schedule.

A famous rose grower once said that after three years, your soil is your responsibility. You can amend it, add top soil, mix with compost, use fertilizer - you can't provide the equivalent of sunshine.
The first year I lived here, I looked out at a back yard where the soil was so poor it wouldn't grow weeds. It sure grows plenty of them now - many sacks of compost later.

I would rather have light soil with lots of composted manure and frequent doses of Miracle Grow than lots of sunlight and poor soil, although great soil and half a day of morning sunshine has proven ideal for me over the years.
Hot afternoon and evening sunshine has not done as well as the "cool" morning sunshine for me. This has been true for every variety of tomato I have grown. I always get at least three or 4 huge 6 oz. maters per vine. j/k