This is a public-interest archive. Personal data is pseudonymized and retained under GDPR Article 89.

Re: Tomato cage material?...

Dennis L. Whitehead wrote:
>
> Howdy hi,
>
> I just started eight varieties of tomato plants.  I want to build some
> sturdy cages.  The local building materials store has 10 guage concrete
> reinforcement wire on sale.  It's 6' wide, has 6" squares and comes in a 50'
> roll.  It's not galvanized.
>
> My hope is that someone wiser and/or more experienced than I can tell me if
> this would make good tomato cages?  My two initial concerns are longevity
> due to rust and the "abrasive" action the oxidized wire might have on the
> plants and fruit.  My plan is to make supports for the cages using steel
> fence posts.
>
> Thanks,
>
> Dennis
>

For several years I have used concrete reinforcement wire. I'm not sure
of the gauge but it is maybe 3' wide and the holes probably smaller than
what you described. We just fashioned the wire into cages about 3' in
diameter and plant 3 plants in each one; rather, we plant the tomato
plants and then put the cage over them! Three in a cage works well for
me; they use the cage and each other for support. I believe I got this
idea from the "Tips for the Lazy Gardener" book, which is where I first
heard about square foot gardening. (I put each cage/3-plant combo into
one 4' square.) I don't use any other supports. It's very simple and the
caging does not harm the plants, that I can see--I just leave the cages
out all winter and everything. (Of course, our winters aren't very
harsh.)
References:
Other Mailing lists | Author Index | Date Index | Subject Index | Thread Index