I've tried growing tomato plants in those cages you can buy at the big box store and Ive also used the single stem method up a string. Currently I'm using the single stem method up 6' bamboo sticks and also string. I really like letting my tomato plants just grow wild but it seems to foster more disease that way and just look messy. Those tomato cages on Gardeners . com are awesome but expensive. How do you do it?
I grow my tomatoes in the greenhouse and in hanging baskets. I’ve grown them in grow bags and in pots. The plants are held up by wire supports. We also use 6’ bamboo canes and clips. I also have raised beds which I use for other veggies. On one, hubby has built a cage that is pulled back to add plants and seeds. I like the cage as it stops birds and cats from getting at the plants.
I just let mine sprawl ! I plant around 50 plants so I dont worry about the few that are lost ! Try putting the cages together little end to little end and let the plants lay across them ! That will keep them off the ground and should be easy to pick ! You can also remove some of the leaves if you want ! Just keep enough to have some shade if you are in a hot climate ! Tomatoes can blister and sunburn !
I grow mine up Tonkin bamboo sticks in a greenhouse. I and others have posted threads on this subject over the years. If you use this site's search engine, you will find a wealth of into. Here is one of my threads on the subject: https://www.gardenstew.com/threads/in-go-the-toms.37132/#post-338428 Good luck, mate. Keep us posted.
We have two 10 foot long trellises made of T posts with hog wire strung between the posts. Very sturdy, easy to tie up the plants, and if I need to I can reach through to pick. We plant our tomatoes in a zig-zag pattern, on both sides of the trellises. We are in a warm (hot, hot, hot!) climate and have found that planting our tomatoes closer together than usually recommended keeps the roots cooler and the fruit from scalding. Those "tomato" cages are pretty good for tall growing varieties of peppers, but a decent tomato plant will eat that cage and spit it out!
Hey Janie--I tremendously enjoyed reading about how you do your toms in your climatic situation. I like your logic in dealing with your local warmth situation. I always said that you were a top gardener. You are right about the cages. I suppose that they are better than nothing in certain situations, but I even have a space problem in my own greenhouse.
I use fencing like this. Cut to 8-9 foot length. Leave enough wire between cuts to wrap around the vertical strands. Voila, tomato cage. I use 2 t posts to stabilize the cages, one on each side. Leave enough space for good ventilation and sunlight penetration. Ain't exactly cheap. Been using my cages for nigh on to 30 years though.
I really like the T-posts. I may have to use that and somehow incorporate in my yard. I also considered using the cattle panels. My space is so limited and anything I do has to be thought out carefully. Do you have any issues with build-up of viruses/blights in the soil when you grow tomatoes season after season in the same spot? That was one of my reasons for going to pots.
Mine have been grown in the same rows for the last ten years with no problems ! Except for the one year that blight hit,, but that had no relation to the place grown ! I never change areas to plant !
IGrow, We've had tomatoes and peppers in the same spot for three years. Following conventional advice, we previously moved our tomatoes and peppers to different locations in the gardens. We haven't had any problems with soil borne diseases while growing in the same spot. We do use a lot of compost to enrich the soil, use "heritage" varieties (in our case, Celebrity and Roma tomatoes, and California Wonder peppers) that seem to be more resistant to problems, and keep fallen leaves picked up and disposed. As FBG said, the T posts and wire fencing isn't cheap at first, but after a few years, the cost is negligible compared to the cost of the cages, and is so much more effective.
I never grow my toms in the same soil in the greenhouse---I simply remove all the soil in the greenhouse and replace it every spring. My replacement mix is topsoil gathered from another place in the veggie garden, compost and rotted manure (about equal parts).
I tie them to my deck rails or any vertical support I have handy Last year I used 6' bamboo stakes, 2-3 per plant. It worked pretty well even though most of mine were indeterminants.
Funny thing is, my potted tomatoes have been getting some leaf spot anyway. Ive been treating as necessary with H2O2 and pruning diseased leaves when they appear. My plan was to dump the potted plants soil in the raised and and just bring in new stuff for the pots.
I use cattle panel. My favorite method so far has been to create vertical rows of panel and also lay the panel horizontally across the top. The plants love to run up and spread, the tomatos hang under and the roots stay cool in the shade. Hey @marlingardener !
