Do you stake your tomatoes?

[GOHUNT]

Or let them lay on the ground? I've done both but for the last several years I've been doing this type of staking or trellising. By running all the strings up front then it's just a matter of threading the vines up through the strings as they grow. We think we have fewer rotten tomatoes by keeping them off the ground. I've got about 50 plants.

 

[pressfit]

I'm doing mine this year just like yours.. last year mine got over 10 feet tall..

 

[Moonman]

I do the same thing. It works great because it keeps them up and easier to pick and keep the grass out. I hate reaching into the vines hoping a snake isn't in there. I use a piece of pvc for my stringer and run the twine through the middle. I run the twine as they are growing and I use my pvc stringer to reach under the limbs to support them.

 

[Forvols]

Yes stake mine, but not like yours I put one stake per plant and tie the loosely as they grow. Like your idea better I think. I have 25plants slicing/sauce/paste. Think I will put out 5 more.

 

[WTM]

thats a florida weave, market growers use it at typically 2 stakes per plant. commercial growers for the cannery let them sprawl but they use a harvesting machine and pick green.

i use 8 ft wood stakes with jute string but i space my plants 3 to 4ft for the indeterminates, prune the bottom 6 in of suckers and bottom leaves. then i keep 4-6 inches of wheat straw mulch under the plants. this keeps the soil from splashing up on the leaves and keeps the soil moisture consistent. soil splashing, inconsistent watering and poor air circulation are the main cause of tomato diseases.

 

[Wobblyshot1]

The Florida weave is what I do. There's all kinds of videos on the internet showing how to do it. Below is just one example.

https://youtu.be/vT0aGhOtgYU

 

[Urban_Hunter]

Such a better idea than what I do... next year!

 

[BamaProud]

The Florida weave is what I do. There's all kinds of videos on the internet showing how to do it. Below is just one example.

https://youtu.be/vT0aGhOtgYU

That is cool.

 

[Tennessee Lead]

I stake and cage both.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

 

[GOHUNT]

I watched that Florida weave video. Looks like a good method but it is not what I do. My string ends up with no weave to it, just feed the tomato vine up between the pairs of string as they grow.

 

[Hunter 257W]

We put ours in cages. 4 or so plants to a cage. I like the cage because the tomato runs into the cage no matter which way it grows and you don't have to bother with adjusting the vines to keep it on the cage.

 

[TennesseeBob]

I had took dog a old chain link dog kennel so I used a panel from it to let the tomatoes grow up into .. so far working well

 

[BackwoodsBoy]

I stake mine one per plant in my plowed section but like the looks of that.

I do have a 4x8 raised bed with 6 tomato plants ( hillbilly and mr stripeys) that has a chicken wire fence all the way around up to about 6ft tall. I put these plants out early and they are enormous already, they have been allowed to sprawl and they support themselves by leaning together and against the chicken wire. Pretty much a mini tomato jungle.

 

[GOHUNT]

So here is how mine are progressing....

 

[WTM]

looks good but one observation. corn and tomatoes arent good companion plants as they share the same pests, mainly the corn ear worm is the same as the tomato fruit worm. keep a watch out for them.

 

[GOHUNT]

looks good but one observation. corn and tomatoes arent good companion plants as they share the same pests, mainly the corn ear worm is the same as the tomato fruit worm. keep a watch out for them.

I guess I didn't know that. I've mostly only seen the tomato horn worms on my tomatoes in the past. Not much I could use to separate my corn and tomatoes this year since that is all I'm growing! I moved my tomatoes from the lower side of the garden spot to the upper side and as a result I have not seen a single Colorado bean beetle on my tomatoes. I suppose those larvae just couldn't find my tomatoes.

 

[WTM]

thats fine just keep an eye out, those worms are greedy and will chase one another out of the corn and they can crawl to the next row over to the tomatoes. most folks spray corn when it silks and if you do that no worries. just look out for pea sized holes and worms like in this pic.

 

[GOHUNT]

DONE! and glad of it!

 

[Dodge Man]

We always use cages and stakes.

 

[GOHUNT]

Dodgeman, your garden it waaay to clean for late in the season. Glad you are not my neighbor...would make me look bad!

NICE!