Tomato Support

Yesterday I told you that the tomato cages and stakes went into the garden.  It seems that how to support the tomato plants is an ongoing issue in our garden.  Our first year I had basic tomato cages that did almost no good.  Last year I bought bigger cages at 54" and even then eventually the tomatoes became so tall and large that they took the cages down. Luckily I was able to rig the cages up with stakes, bamboo poles and tying the plants to the 6' privacy fence. 

Tomatoes last year tied to the fence and anything else I could use to prop them up.

This year where the tomatoes are located I don't have a fence to act as a last resort support. I considered buying Texas tomato cages but decided they were too pricey for not being able to touch and test them out before buying them.  So I decided to use the 54" cages which are actually quite sturdy but then also to stake the tomatoes so that when they grow taller than the cages the tomatoes have an extra support.  The issue last year was that they became too tall and top heavy, the stake will hopefully solve this problem. 

I wasn't able to find stakes tall enough so I went to the lumber section of my hardware store and had them cut 1x2x8 cedar boards into 1x1x8.  I wanted stakes that were eight feet in length because I needed to put a good 12" or more in the ground to make sure that they are sturdy and able to hold the weight of the tomatoes but still have enough length above than the cages.  Right now the height of the stakes (at 7' tall) does look a little ridiculous and overkill but I am sure come July and August I will be happy with my decision.