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Post by brownrexx on Jun 12, 2019 8:41:30 GMT -5
How do you support your tomato plants? Stakes, Florida Weave, cages, let them sprawl, something else? I only grow 15 - 18 plants each year so I cage them. 20180509_174132 by Brownrexx, on Flickr
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Post by hairymooseknuckles on Jun 12, 2019 9:06:16 GMT -5
No support. I tried it all, but had the most success letting them sprawl. Less work too!
I like to walk among them, grab and shake them daily. Cages make that more difficult.
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Post by mgulfcoastguy on Jun 12, 2019 9:29:10 GMT -5
Cages made from concrete reinforcements wire.
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Post by paquebot on Jun 12, 2019 9:33:36 GMT -5
Standard cages are not designed right. They are small at the bottom and wide at the top, exact opposite of how a tomato plant grows. Plants get top-heavy and then the cage needs support as well. Best cages are those which are wider at the bottom but they always seem to cost at least twice as much. I buy the biggest and heaviest when on sale and then cut the top ring off. End up with the desired pyramid cage without the extra cost.
In BC, before cages, didn't even use stakes. Planted tomatoes at least 3' apart and added 6" of straw. Plants did whatever they wanted to do and fruit rested on the clean straw.
Martin
The truth is more important than the facts.
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Post by meandtk on Jun 12, 2019 10:05:59 GMT -5
Oak stakes
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Post by pepperhead212 on Jun 12, 2019 10:26:01 GMT -5
I have trellises, made from CRW, which I also use for cukes, bottle gourds, and this season, wax gourds. Smaller tomatoes I have in another row, with a trellis made of the thin, polypropylene mesh (which I also grow beans on) , but my larger tomatoes brought that kind down, a couple of years ago. Here are the cherry tomatoes a few days ago, about a foot from the top of the 5' trellis. I add an extension for these, along with the cukes, then when they get to the tops, I just let them drop down, as they grow. You can see that light trellis on the left, that the beans are growing on, which is the stuff the tomatoes took down a couple of years ago. 2 Jasper, 2 Cherry Bomb, and 2 Sunsugar plants, 6-8 by pepperhead212, on Flickr
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Post by paulf on Jun 12, 2019 10:27:13 GMT -5
My tomatoes are also caged by concrete reinforcing wire bent into a circular form with electric fence posts on two spots for stability. My tomatoes grow differently than Paquebot's. Mine are thinner at the bottom and fountain out the top. this year a year or so ago
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tallpines
Pro Member
Posts: 298
Zone:: 4a
Favorite Vegetable:: This week, it’s Rhubarb
Joined: February 2019
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Post by tallpines on Jun 12, 2019 12:49:50 GMT -5
Where do you get your straw?
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ceresone
Junior Member
Posts: 33
Joined: June 2017
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Post by ceresone on Jun 12, 2019 15:20:38 GMT -5
Best I ever grew was filling the concrete wire cage with rotted hay straw compost. And planting the plants around the outside, their roots grow deep into the mess in the middle, they support themselves, and oh how they produce. First I capped and drilled PVC pipe and inserted it in the center. I had six of these cages, and watering system was hooked together, with one hose connection. 36 tomato plants 4 families used and canned enough for winter!
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Post by guruofgardens on Jun 12, 2019 15:53:03 GMT -5
We use concrete reinforcing wire made into cages for in ground garden. For the pots, we purchased coated cages that are heavier but not my favorite.
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Post by paulf on Jun 12, 2019 16:54:00 GMT -5
Where do you get your straw? A local farmer friend if they have it, if not there is a hardware store/garden center that sells bales of straw. Local grown is better, fewer weed seeds and cheaper. I buy straw every fall and use the bales for additional insulation around the foundation of the house where there are water lines. Then in spring it goes into the garden as mulch.
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Post by ladymarmalade on Jun 12, 2019 18:05:52 GMT -5
I use foldable cages, only I use them unfolded. So basically, I put a wall of cage fence down the row of tomatoes, and then I tie the plants to the cages. I generally need to add some surveyors stakes for reinforcement.
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Post by daylilydude on Jun 12, 2019 18:57:04 GMT -5
I use cages made from concrete reinforcements wire, and they are like 20 sumptin years old now...
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Post by september on Jun 12, 2019 21:26:26 GMT -5
I used to use 2'x4's wired to the tops of steel fence posts to drop lines to suspend the tomato plants. I like having easy access to the plants on both sides, without having to reach through wire for harvesting. After my horses died off, I repurposed the 16 ft welded wire stock panels I had for part of their fencing. They had to be cut to fit my 12 ft beds. I tie or weave the branches into the openings. Wispy tomatoes weave easily, the stiffer varieties need some ties or clips.
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Post by brownrexx on Jun 13, 2019 8:24:12 GMT -5
LOVE the pictures on this thread. september I used stock panels to make my cages. They are heavy and more expensive than concrete reinforcing wire but I love them, they don't get rusty or bent.
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Post by bestofour on Jun 13, 2019 9:40:46 GMT -5
I've got one bed caged and one bed on trellises.
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Post by Gianna on Jun 13, 2019 9:55:54 GMT -5
I'd love to have a better, stronger system, but dont have the space to store big cages when not in use. I do use probably the worst type of tomato cages - those old-fashioned, small, round, 3-tier ones. But they work fine for my purposes. They keep the base of the plant off the ground, and only begin to flop when they get taller. But the bent stems seem to just keep growing. My cages are to keep the main part of the plant off the ground, and the fruits higher and quite visible. We have snakes here, and just 'reaching in' to pick is a no-no.
I also keep planting new plants throughout the year, usually from cuttings. Both in pots and in the ground, so I have a steady supply of 'plants in their prime' to pick from. It keeps me busy and off the streets.
Those little tomato cages are also useful when growing short peas, and for even supporting pepper plants.
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