As profiled by Farhad Manjoo in Slate, Ray Newstead has spent the past few years developing the EarthTainer(TM), a self-watering container made from cheap, easily available components to grow the tomatoes you crave. This seemingly simple design incorporates elements such as a larger  reservoir, built-in trellis, and flag indicating the water level that bring it to a higher level than most other plant containers.

The EarthTainer is not difficult to build once the parts have been collected. Manjoo, in his Slate article, estimates a cost of $150 and an afternoon to build three containers, which should last for 7 or 8 years. Newstead offers the plans for free, saying, “(w)ith the global food crisis escalating, I believe that spreading knowledge worldwide of how to build EarthTainer growing systems could help feed hungry people in impoverished areas around the world.  Not just heirloom tomatoes, but corn, soybeans, and other high-nutrient crops can be grown.”

Plans for the EarthTainer can be downloaded here or found on the Resources page of this site.