Tomatoe Cages

[ninnymary]

sorry! HAD TO VENT, since that are hazardous with livestock.

Did I miss something? Ducks, no one said anything about cementing anything in. We are referring to tomato cages that you can make out of those concrete rebar panels that you find at Home Depot. We are talking of just making an 18" circle with them and tying with wire or zip ties. No cement is used.

Mary

 

[Dahlia]

I grew some tomatoes last year without metal store bought cages and they did well! I did however put 3 wooden stakes in the ground by each plant and then I tied hemp string tightly around the wood stakes at 3 levels. It was cheap and it worked great! The tomatoes had the support they needed!

 

[Dirtmechanic]

After using the Florida weave for all of my tomatoes this year, I have become a fan, and will use that method exclusively from now on. Although you do need to devote time every week or so to train the vines (and run the strings) the Florida weave allows very easy access for weeding and harvesting. As the plants become larger, you might find it necessary to tie "belly strings" between poles about midway on each side, to pull in the side growth. I didn't do much suckering (I seldom do) and those belly strings kept the walkways from being over crowded.

Additionally, I would suggest overestimating the pole height by 20-33 percent. By the end of the season I feel like I understand why my wife complains about her old brassieres.

 

[Dirtmechanic]

I grew some tomatoes last year without metal store bought cages and they did well! I did however put 3 wooden stakes in the ground by each plant and then I tied hemp string tightly around the wood stakes at 3 levels. It was cheap and it worked great! The tomatoes had the support they needed!

I know this as "The Florida Weave".

 

[Collector]

I bought a 5’ tall roll of remesh this year and made 20 5’ tall cages. They work really well and will never need replacing. I just pounded in a t-post and zip tied the cage to it and no more maintenance needed all season. I still have about 20’ feet of the roll left so I’m thinking of a garden project to use it on. There was an initial investment of $150 bucks for the mesh but if they last a lifetime I will get plenty of use out of them. I still ended up using some of the old store bought cages around the yard in containers but the remesh cages worked great in the main garden.

 

[digitS']

Here's what I think of as the Florida Weave (link):

In/Out In/Out In/Out In/Out ... Tied to each stake and at the end of the row, return down the line of tomatoes with the In/Out opposite of the first passage.

I did this for a season, or two.

Prior to that, I had fewer plants and used @Dahlia 's technique. Well, the same as I do now in the potted plants. Three stakes to hold the little cage with twine above.

Steve

 

[bobm]

Did I miss something? Ducks, no one said anything about cementing anything in. We are referring to tomato cages that you can make out of those concrete rebar panels that you find at Home Depot. We are talking of just making an 18" circle with them and tying igwith wire or zip ties. No cement is used.

Mary

The woven wire cages used for containing tomato plants are VERY DANGEROUS for livestock as they tend to paw at the standing or stored cages. They get their legs tangled in the wire ( especially horses ) and may skin themselves to the knees or hocks at best or break their leg (s). This results in a very expensive Vet bill that can last with daily bandage changing care to a month or more. Depending on how big the wound is or how many legs are involved, those with multiple severe injuries, or brocken legs may/will have to be put down .

 

[ninnymary]

The woven wire cages used for containing tomato plants are VERY DANGEROUS for livestock as they tend to paw at the standing or stored cages. They get their legs tangled in the wire ( especially horses ) and may skin themselves to the knees or hocks at best or break their leg (s). This results in a very expensive Vet bill that can last with daily bandage changing care to a month or more. Depending on how big the wound is or how many legs are involved, those with multiple severe injuries, or brocken legs may/will have to be put down .

Bob, since I don't have any livestock in this small city lot, I think I'm ok.

Mary

 

[ninnymary]

Additionally, I would suggest overestimating the pole height by 20-33 percent. By the end of the season I feel like I understand why my wife complains about her old brassieres.

Yes you are right. My tomatoes grow at least 7ft tall but I just plan on letting them overflow when they reach the top of the stakes/string Lol.

Mary

 

[digitS']

The Sprawl isn't a terrible choice for me.

I have DW to tread through the inner passage if it is a double row and about the time for the fruit to be ripe. She often picks more tomatoes than I do but I carry the bucket.

There is room in the big veggie garden and the soil surface lends itself to sprawling plants. What I'm most concerned about is the weight pulls the vines down and the fruit tends to lay on the "soil." That word is in quotations marks because it's virtually a stone mulch after several weeks of running sprinklers every few days. Stone mulches are better for holding tomatoes than dirt.

Steve