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#17
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Tomato Spirals?
In article KatraMungBean-
, says... A simple fence trellis might be even simpler? That's what I use for beans. It's not exactly fence, but I use garden mesh stretched between two 2"x2"s with another 2"x2" across the top. These are 8' tall and the bottom foot is screwed to the planks that make up my 4'x4' raised beds. Beans, peas, tomatoes, cucumbers, etc.. Works for all of them. -- Where ARE those Iraqi WMDs? |
#18
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Tomato Spirals?
In article KatraMungBean-
, says... A simple fence trellis might be even simpler? That's what I use for beans. It's not exactly fence, but I use garden mesh stretched between two 2"x2"s with another 2"x2" across the top. These are 8' tall and the bottom foot is screwed to the planks that make up my 4'x4' raised beds. Beans, peas, tomatoes, cucumbers, etc.. Works for all of them. -- Where ARE those Iraqi WMDs? |
#19
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Tomato Spirals?
"DigitalVinyl" wrote in message news Frogleg wrote: On Mon, 15 Mar 2004 01:57:16 GMT, "FDR" wrote: Looking through the Garden Tools by Lee Valley catalog, I came across a tomato staking method using spirals. Basically, it's a 6 foot long piece of metal that you push into the ground and it is spiraled all the way up. The tomato plant grows into the spiral and gives natural support. Does anyone know what a full-grown tomato plant with fruit weighs? I think its gonna vary. MY bush last year was about 6' high and two foot around. I'd say the most tomatoes it had on it at once was about 10-12 lbs plus the weight of the plant itself, which i'd be wild-ass guessing is ?10,15,20? pounds. WHen I pulled them at end of season I thought they were heavier than expected. My vine, which actually ended up growing as two vines on two stakes, was probably less than that. I used the stackable tomato cages from Gardener's Supply. They are unfortunately expensive(like most of their catalog) but it made caging a 6' bush effortless. My neighbor liked how easy it was to harvest and they didn't keep sliding and collapsing down a stake when heavy with fruit. Neither of us do staking well. Plants always slide down and create tight bends. I am considering buying another four this year despite overpriced costs. Hi, I like those cages from Gardener's supply too, but I can't see myself paying so much for them. If they were cheaper I'd definitely get them. |
#20
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Tomato Spirals?
"DigitalVinyl" wrote in message news Frogleg wrote: On Mon, 15 Mar 2004 01:57:16 GMT, "FDR" wrote: Looking through the Garden Tools by Lee Valley catalog, I came across a tomato staking method using spirals. Basically, it's a 6 foot long piece of metal that you push into the ground and it is spiraled all the way up. The tomato plant grows into the spiral and gives natural support. Does anyone know what a full-grown tomato plant with fruit weighs? I think its gonna vary. MY bush last year was about 6' high and two foot around. I'd say the most tomatoes it had on it at once was about 10-12 lbs plus the weight of the plant itself, which i'd be wild-ass guessing is ?10,15,20? pounds. WHen I pulled them at end of season I thought they were heavier than expected. My vine, which actually ended up growing as two vines on two stakes, was probably less than that. I used the stackable tomato cages from Gardener's Supply. They are unfortunately expensive(like most of their catalog) but it made caging a 6' bush effortless. My neighbor liked how easy it was to harvest and they didn't keep sliding and collapsing down a stake when heavy with fruit. Neither of us do staking well. Plants always slide down and create tight bends. I am considering buying another four this year despite overpriced costs. Hi, I like those cages from Gardener's supply too, but I can't see myself paying so much for them. If they were cheaper I'd definitely get them. |
#21
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Tomato Spirals?
"FDR" wrote in message ...
Looking through the Garden Tools by Lee Valley catalog, I came across a tomato staking method using spirals. Basically, it's a 6 foot long piece of metal that you push into the ground and it is spiraled all the way up. The tomato plant grows into the spiral and gives natural support. The ad claims that it is the most popular way to do it in Europe. Has anybody actually tried these? They are $4.50 a piece and seem like a bargain. I just don't know how sturdy they are. I'd like to try staking this year. Just don't know what method to use. It seems to be by the time you spiral a 6' piece of metal it's only going to be about 4' high. Bury part of that in the ground, and it's even less.... or are you saying it's 6' high? Indeterminate tomatoes will grow higher than 6', so you may outgrow this pretty quickly unless it really is 6' high. Two things I use: 1. I have 3/4" electrical conduit (3 8' pieces forming an inverted U) and a net that forms a climbing fence for the tomatoes (and other veggies). This is pretty permanent, and it's very sturdy since the strength is from the top. It supports cantaloupe with no problems. 2. This isn't as good, but it's much easier to construct, cheap, and you can put it up and take it down pretty quickly. All of the hardware stores sell "garden" fencing that's 3, 4, or 6' wide and about 50' long. I cut this into 7-10' sections, curl them into an exaggerated U, and secure it in the ground with a single 4' fencing stake (the green kind with the little hooks that point up on the top and down on the bottom). As long as the stake is secure, the fencing does really well, even in heavy winds. If you make an O instead of a U, it's even more secure, but it's harder to harvest the fruit if it grows in the middle... especially melons. With tomatoes, they have always needed minor assistance when climbing, but I doubt that changes with the structure you choose. One final note... the main disadvantage to both of these structures is that it's a bear to protect the plants in hail storms, etc. But then again, what do you expect when you have 7' high plants? |
#22
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Tomato Spirals?
"FDR" wrote in message ...
Looking through the Garden Tools by Lee Valley catalog, I came across a tomato staking method using spirals. Basically, it's a 6 foot long piece of metal that you push into the ground and it is spiraled all the way up. The tomato plant grows into the spiral and gives natural support. The ad claims that it is the most popular way to do it in Europe. Has anybody actually tried these? They are $4.50 a piece and seem like a bargain. I just don't know how sturdy they are. I'd like to try staking this year. Just don't know what method to use. It seems to be by the time you spiral a 6' piece of metal it's only going to be about 4' high. Bury part of that in the ground, and it's even less.... or are you saying it's 6' high? Indeterminate tomatoes will grow higher than 6', so you may outgrow this pretty quickly unless it really is 6' high. Two things I use: 1. I have 3/4" electrical conduit (3 8' pieces forming an inverted U) and a net that forms a climbing fence for the tomatoes (and other veggies). This is pretty permanent, and it's very sturdy since the strength is from the top. It supports cantaloupe with no problems. 2. This isn't as good, but it's much easier to construct, cheap, and you can put it up and take it down pretty quickly. All of the hardware stores sell "garden" fencing that's 3, 4, or 6' wide and about 50' long. I cut this into 7-10' sections, curl them into an exaggerated U, and secure it in the ground with a single 4' fencing stake (the green kind with the little hooks that point up on the top and down on the bottom). As long as the stake is secure, the fencing does really well, even in heavy winds. If you make an O instead of a U, it's even more secure, but it's harder to harvest the fruit if it grows in the middle... especially melons. With tomatoes, they have always needed minor assistance when climbing, but I doubt that changes with the structure you choose. One final note... the main disadvantage to both of these structures is that it's a bear to protect the plants in hail storms, etc. But then again, what do you expect when you have 7' high plants? |
#23
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Tomato Spirals?
"DigitalVinyl" wrote in message news Frogleg wrote: On Mon, 15 Mar 2004 01:57:16 GMT, "FDR" wrote: Looking through the Garden Tools by Lee Valley catalog, I came across a tomato staking method using spirals. Basically, it's a 6 foot long piece of metal that you push into the ground and it is spiraled all the way up. The tomato plant grows into the spiral and gives natural support. Does anyone know what a full-grown tomato plant with fruit weighs? I think its gonna vary. MY bush last year was about 6' high and two foot around. I'd say the most tomatoes it had on it at once was about 10-12 lbs plus the weight of the plant itself, which i'd be wild-ass guessing is ?10,15,20? pounds. WHen I pulled them at end of season I thought they were heavier than expected. My vine, which actually ended up growing as two vines on two stakes, was probably less than that. I used the stackable tomato cages from Gardener's Supply. They are unfortunately expensive(like most of their catalog) but it made caging a 6' bush effortless. My neighbor liked how easy it was to harvest and they didn't keep sliding and collapsing down a stake when heavy with fruit. Neither of us do staking well. Plants always slide down and create tight bends. I am considering buying another four this year despite overpriced costs. Hi, I like those cages from Gardener's supply too, but I can't see myself paying so much for them. If they were cheaper I'd definitely get them. |
#24
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Tomato Spirals?
In article KatraMungBean-
, says... A simple fence trellis might be even simpler? That's what I use for beans. It's not exactly fence, but I use garden mesh stretched between two 2"x2"s with another 2"x2" across the top. These are 8' tall and the bottom foot is screwed to the planks that make up my 4'x4' raised beds. Beans, peas, tomatoes, cucumbers, etc.. Works for all of them. -- Where ARE those Iraqi WMDs? |
#25
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Tomato Spirals?
In article KatraMungBean-
, says... A simple fence trellis might be even simpler? That's what I use for beans. It's not exactly fence, but I use garden mesh stretched between two 2"x2"s with another 2"x2" across the top. These are 8' tall and the bottom foot is screwed to the planks that make up my 4'x4' raised beds. Beans, peas, tomatoes, cucumbers, etc.. Works for all of them. -- Where ARE those Iraqi WMDs? |
#26
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Tomato Spirals?
"FDR" wrote in message ...
Looking through the Garden Tools by Lee Valley catalog, I came across a tomato staking method using spirals. Basically, it's a 6 foot long piece of metal that you push into the ground and it is spiraled all the way up. The tomato plant grows into the spiral and gives natural support. The ad claims that it is the most popular way to do it in Europe. Has anybody actually tried these? They are $4.50 a piece and seem like a bargain. I just don't know how sturdy they are. I'd like to try staking this year. Just don't know what method to use. It seems to be by the time you spiral a 6' piece of metal it's only going to be about 4' high. Bury part of that in the ground, and it's even less.... or are you saying it's 6' high? Indeterminate tomatoes will grow higher than 6', so you may outgrow this pretty quickly unless it really is 6' high. Two things I use: 1. I have 3/4" electrical conduit (3 8' pieces forming an inverted U) and a net that forms a climbing fence for the tomatoes (and other veggies). This is pretty permanent, and it's very sturdy since the strength is from the top. It supports cantaloupe with no problems. 2. This isn't as good, but it's much easier to construct, cheap, and you can put it up and take it down pretty quickly. All of the hardware stores sell "garden" fencing that's 3, 4, or 6' wide and about 50' long. I cut this into 7-10' sections, curl them into an exaggerated U, and secure it in the ground with a single 4' fencing stake (the green kind with the little hooks that point up on the top and down on the bottom). As long as the stake is secure, the fencing does really well, even in heavy winds. If you make an O instead of a U, it's even more secure, but it's harder to harvest the fruit if it grows in the middle... especially melons. With tomatoes, they have always needed minor assistance when climbing, but I doubt that changes with the structure you choose. One final note... the main disadvantage to both of these structures is that it's a bear to protect the plants in hail storms, etc. But then again, what do you expect when you have 7' high plants? |
#27
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Tomato Spirals?
"FDR" wrote in message ...
Looking through the Garden Tools by Lee Valley catalog, I came across a tomato staking method using spirals. Basically, it's a 6 foot long piece of metal that you push into the ground and it is spiraled all the way up. The tomato plant grows into the spiral and gives natural support. The ad claims that it is the most popular way to do it in Europe. Has anybody actually tried these? They are $4.50 a piece and seem like a bargain. I just don't know how sturdy they are. I'd like to try staking this year. Just don't know what method to use. It seems to be by the time you spiral a 6' piece of metal it's only going to be about 4' high. Bury part of that in the ground, and it's even less.... or are you saying it's 6' high? Indeterminate tomatoes will grow higher than 6', so you may outgrow this pretty quickly unless it really is 6' high. Two things I use: 1. I have 3/4" electrical conduit (3 8' pieces forming an inverted U) and a net that forms a climbing fence for the tomatoes (and other veggies). This is pretty permanent, and it's very sturdy since the strength is from the top. It supports cantaloupe with no problems. 2. This isn't as good, but it's much easier to construct, cheap, and you can put it up and take it down pretty quickly. All of the hardware stores sell "garden" fencing that's 3, 4, or 6' wide and about 50' long. I cut this into 7-10' sections, curl them into an exaggerated U, and secure it in the ground with a single 4' fencing stake (the green kind with the little hooks that point up on the top and down on the bottom). As long as the stake is secure, the fencing does really well, even in heavy winds. If you make an O instead of a U, it's even more secure, but it's harder to harvest the fruit if it grows in the middle... especially melons. With tomatoes, they have always needed minor assistance when climbing, but I doubt that changes with the structure you choose. One final note... the main disadvantage to both of these structures is that it's a bear to protect the plants in hail storms, etc. But then again, what do you expect when you have 7' high plants? |
#28
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Tomato Spirals?
On Mon, 15 Mar 2004 18:53:10 GMT, "FDR"
wrote: Frogleg wrote: On Mon, 15 Mar 2004 01:57:16 GMT, "FDR" wrote Looking through the Garden Tools by Lee Valley catalog, I came across a tomato staking method using spirals. Basically, it's a 6 foot long piece of metal that you push into the ground and it is spiraled all the way up. I like those cages from Gardener's supply too, but I can't see myself paying so much for them. If they were cheaper I'd definitely get them. Go somewhere like Home Depot and get a roll of 6" mesh concrete reinforcing wire. Ask about what kind of tool you need to cut the wire. Here's a rough illustration and directions: http://www.extension.umn.edu/project...37trellis.html This page suggests tying the cage to a stake, but if you snip off the bottom wire, you'll have a 6" multi-spike perimeter to put into the ground. These are sturdy, last for years and years, and do a good job of supporting the tomatoes. |
#29
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Tomato Spirals?
On Mon, 15 Mar 2004 18:53:10 GMT, "FDR"
wrote: Frogleg wrote: On Mon, 15 Mar 2004 01:57:16 GMT, "FDR" wrote Looking through the Garden Tools by Lee Valley catalog, I came across a tomato staking method using spirals. Basically, it's a 6 foot long piece of metal that you push into the ground and it is spiraled all the way up. I like those cages from Gardener's supply too, but I can't see myself paying so much for them. If they were cheaper I'd definitely get them. Go somewhere like Home Depot and get a roll of 6" mesh concrete reinforcing wire. Ask about what kind of tool you need to cut the wire. Here's a rough illustration and directions: http://www.extension.umn.edu/project...37trellis.html This page suggests tying the cage to a stake, but if you snip off the bottom wire, you'll have a 6" multi-spike perimeter to put into the ground. These are sturdy, last for years and years, and do a good job of supporting the tomatoes. |
#30
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Tomato Spirals?
"Frogleg" wrote in message ... On Mon, 15 Mar 2004 18:53:10 GMT, "FDR" wrote: Frogleg wrote: On Mon, 15 Mar 2004 01:57:16 GMT, "FDR" wrote Looking through the Garden Tools by Lee Valley catalog, I came across a tomato staking method using spirals. Basically, it's a 6 foot long piece of metal that you push into the ground and it is spiraled all the way up. I like those cages from Gardener's supply too, but I can't see myself paying so much for them. If they were cheaper I'd definitely get them. Go somewhere like Home Depot and get a roll of 6" mesh concrete reinforcing wire. Ask about what kind of tool you need to cut the wire. Here's a rough illustration and directions: http://www.extension.umn.edu/project...37trellis.html This page suggests tying the cage to a stake, but if you snip off the bottom wire, you'll have a 6" multi-spike perimeter to put into the ground. These are sturdy, last for years and years, and do a good job of supporting the tomatoes. Though they are certainly sturdy, I don't think they'd be for me since my wife wouldn't appreciate the aesthetics or lack of easy storage capability. |
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