This is an update to my video on how to make and use a free DIY grow bag for growing vegetables
.Make free DIY self watering grow bag for vegetable gardening Larry Hall inspired.
I got the idea of grow bags from Larry Hall who uses 50 cent Walmart bags and also rain gutters to grow his vegetables. I could not get any Walmart bags so made a tool to poke a ton of holes in my bags of dirt and used them as grow bags and set them into troughs of water made with plastic garbage bag liners and PVC. I think this method is working out well and can not think of a cheaper or easier method of growing plants on my balcony. The bags of dirt only cost $2 at Loews. If you try it, be sure to use dirt with lots of organic matter so it will wick the water properly.
I don’t get much sun on my balcony as it faces east, so I am experimenting with different vegetables and plants to see what will grow the best in my situation.
I have been eating the sweet potato leaves as they grow very well and will be growing more ginger and have bought some Malabar spinach seeds to try .
here are some of my other gardening videos you may be interested in.
part 2 sweet potato leaves for food on the balcony experiment -algae & plant growth
Hester Martz tightwad potting plants method
Balcony vegetable gardening with grow bags made from landscape cloth and glue gun
Make free DIY self watering grow bag for vegetable gardening Larry Hall inspired.
balcony vegetable garden experiment update
https://www.youtube.com/edit?video_id=eF8dO5ellxs&ns=1
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44 Comments
Wow! They really took off, and you have lots of flowers on those tomatoes too. I can't wait to see how your sweet potatoes do. I'm going to do the same. It's just now getting warm enough to plant anything here, so I hope to get them in real soon. Everything looks so beautiful. Congratulations!
Hi Sheila,
I am going to be planting more sweet potatos on a trellis to use the leaves, I also will be experimenting with the malabar spinach which loves the heat i will be gettiong on the balcony soon.
Thanks for watching and good luck to you too.
Your plants seem to be really growing!! Lots of blossoms on your tomato plants so I sure hope you can get some tomatoes even with the sun you do get. I have never eaten Sweet Potato Leaves but heading to check out your vid on that. Look forward to future vid updates. Take care.
I grew cherry tomatoes indoors once. Got blossoms, but no fruit. 'Cause there were no bees or other pollinators! I took a small artist's paint brush and gently brushed from blossom to blossom and got lots of tomatoes!
Hi Robert, I was thinking about that when i started getting blossoms and I had about 6 tomatos so did not try to pollinate them myself, but I have seen no fruit form since those first few so may take your advice real soon.
Your balcony garden is fantastic. You really did an excellent job and used your space well. My dad grows cherry tomatoes on his back porch and he had them through February. He lives in Georgia, so we thought the cold would get them, but he had a nice long run with them.
That is a pretty good idea. I hope you get lots of produce and have a great time growing it.
Thanks Joyce.
Thanks Trace. I grew them a long time ago when i had a yard and got them to grow for a long time in the warm weather we have down here.. I am still experimenting with what can grow in the limited sun I have. I will be growing more parsley and swette potatos and ginger and have ordered some malabar spinach seeds. I had back luck with the onions, lettuce and even mustard.
thanks imstillworkin. it is fun to see what will grow in the small space and limited sun and the lazy tendencies of me the gardener. I am learning a lot from the plants and you guys too. Susan, if you get the time, check out a youtuber named Mugsyjeff, he and his wife Wilma are in Australia and he grows very interesting plants and cooks many dishes with home grown ingredients and is an experimenter like you.
eating home grown will spoil you though.
it is hard to eat store tomatoes once you grew them, same with eating fresh caught shrimp, I used to net them off of the bridges and eat them the same night, which made it impossible to eat most other shrimp afterwards.
I believe that these methods will surely work out and I am sure as well that this is really nice for our balcony. This self watering grow bag is really good and I guess this is very economical. I got your ideas and I will give it a try.
Rob, how do you eat the leaves of sweet potatoes? Like eating salad or you have to cook it? I didn't know about eating leaves of sweet potatoes but it's nice to know that you could eat the leaves.
Great video. I also grow it from my balcony. Loved and Subbed. Updates of tomatoes
Super tool.Thanks!
Your plants look great ! However being that they are on a screened patio will they produce fruit if there are few if any bugs to pollinate the flowers?
You should self pollinate with a paint brush~
To get tomatoes to pollinate indoors just shake the branches with blooms daily. I also use a heating pad under the pots/bags as tomatoes like heat (i'm in the cold NW). The leaf mold is usually caused by lack of water so you might try increasing the amount of water. I'm enjoying sweet potatoes also – make an interesting house plant.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=khrvw4tG1MI
Very encouraging and gonna try that in my balcony, but why have you inserted those PVC pipe (apart from those used for trellis) inside of the bag, was that to keep the soil moist, and how do you do that ?
Hi, I will appreciate to get some info how and soil composition and size of planters to grow sweet potatoes and ginger. Thanks.
This is great. You just put the bag on top of the water like that and that would do the job? How much water should one put there? About 1 inch or so?
I really like the trellis you made! I have been wanting to have my son and husband make some PVC projects! We will use our seasonal hardware store coupon for that item. You actually made me realize that many of the wooden projects in my book could very cheaply and easilybe made with PVC.
I can't tollerate all that plastic and Pvc
oh that was so nice to see what you did with the bags
I am useing
Them my self now thank you so much, at
Godisgood
108@g mail.COM HARRIEZANN
excellent stuff keep it up. just began my videos again getting some ideas. hope you like, if you do hit up a sub 🙂
nice share
Thanks for the information
I go through way more water when using bags. Water is cheap but I've been on this water kick for a while now where I try to see just how far I can get with minimal water. Bags are no good at all for my little experiments.
Love it..
Thanks by very good information, here in Brazil we love pure and organic food
excellent Idea sir.Today only I will grow radish in this type of plastic bags.Thanks for this video sir.
mason bees help with the pollination
encouraging am going to do it
It is beautiful
Nc
Good
What size are the grow bags (Diameter and height) ?
PVC is not a good choice of materials for a trellis. Especially if you build one that will be exposed to UV light which will degrade the plastic. PVC was never designed to carry a load so will shatter when laden with tomatoes or other veggies – especially as it gets older. A better choice is galvanized water pipe. Stores such as Lowe's or Home Depot will cut it to length and thread the ends for you at a minimal cost. The pipe will most likely outlast both of our lives.
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Do you have to have water in the reservoir all the time and when do you know to refill it?
Thanks.
Hey Robb I here’s a guy who has solved the “lots of flowers, little tomatoes” phenomenon
This guy spanks his tomatoes
https://youtu.be/WoVY0TQoIBk
What about the grow bag in the title?