[christokes87]

So its my first year growing tomatoes, which I will be doing in my greenhouse and most like in grow bags and containers. It seems to be a re-occuring theme in books that irregular watering or allowing the compost to dry out between watering causes tomatoes to split.

So what do people do/use to make sure their plants are suitably watered? I've seen lots of contraptions such as growpots, botanico grow bag watering pots, big drippa watering kits, claber idris, growbag watering pots, self watering containers, etc. But I'm not sure if they're entirely necessary.

Should I stop worrying and stick some bottomless pots into a grow bag and water them once a day?

[the Kergan]

Due to the rubbish weather I have only been watering mine as and when the compost drys out. When it warms up and my first fruits start getting to marble size I will start watering twice a day. In the morning and early evening.

I have small plastic 500mm drinks bottles with the bottoms removed and the neck of the bottles pushed down in to the compost near the roots of the plants. I will fill these bottles each watering therefore giving the plants a regular measured amout of water each day.
Last year I watered with a 2ltr can and gave them a quarter of a can between four plants twice a day and hardly had any split tommies at all.

[sarajane]

I plant mine into flower buckets (10 for 99pence at Morisons), holes in the bottom with a mixture of very well rotted manure, home made compost and some B and Q multipurpose compost.  No fancy pots here.

If its hot I give a good water every day but when the weather is cool and damp like it is at the moment I find every 2nd or 3rd day is all that is needed.

Just make sure the compost stays damp at all times and feed once a week once the fruits are showing

[yorkiegal]

My toms are all in a polytunnel in a mixture of bottomless pots, proper tomato planters full of compost, and the remainder planted directly into the soil. I've been watering every two days and they haven't needed much of a soak, except for those in the planter.  They're all growing really well. Of course I'll increase watering if the weather heats up and when they start to get fruit.

I did try the upturned bottle into the compost trick but found that either it all drained through straight away or it didn't drain at all.

[devonbarmygardener]

I've got these screw-on pointy watering things on my bottle tops - it spreads the water out and through the soil.
Only 2 of my pots ran out the bottom and I used that water retaining gel in their soil so thats probably why!
Otherwise, I water daily when it's hot or every other day when it's cool.