On Sat, 21 Aug 2004 22:59:57 -0700, (Glenna Rose) wrote:

(snip)
If I had the intestinal fortitude and strong hands and heavy duty
lineman's cutters, I'd made some great cages of the panels.

I picked up some cages like that at an auction. Somebody else had made them from
the cattle panels. They're about 5 feet tall and about 4 feet on a side. Nice
and strong.

Even cut to
place as four-feet long pieces shaped to a right angle would work well and
stack very well in the off season. Supports could be eight feet tall
getting two from each panel if one wanted them that tall (or three 6-ft
cages). Of course, the tomatoes would need additional training with only
two sides. Metal electrical conduit cut to the appropriate height would
work well as a stabilizer (stake).

This year, where I had the tomato plants on the cattle panel last year, I
have cucumbers with the pepper plants between the cucumbers and the
walkway. Many of you have also had a bumper year of cucumbers so can
imagine how well this has worked for those.

I had planned to have one on one side of the garden for raspberry vines
but didn't get it done this year, but it should work well for those as
well.

Have you tried making a trellis from the cattle panels? Just put two fence posts
in the ground about 8 feet apart, then put the panel over them, making a hoop of
it with the ends held down by the bottoms of the fence posts. It makes a nice
trellis for cucumbers, peas, and anything else you want to let climb on it.
(snip)