This is another very effective way to handle tomatoes.  Actually it will outperform cages in particular when you deal with indeterminate plants (most heirloom varieties are) which will grow beyond 6 feet.  When tomatoes grow in excess of the cage height, the cage becomes top-heavy and will topple over during a storm unless secured with T-posts for instance. 

So let's look at the cattle panel trellis.  You will need the standard panel which you find in all feed stores for about $12 (15' by 5').  The panel should have squares which let you have easy access to your tomatoes.  You will also need 3 seven foot T-posts per panel and special ties which connect the posts to the panels, all very inexpensive.  No special tool is required for this installation and as you can see on the left, all I need to attach the ties is a simple screw-driver.  I suggest you install your panels with a friend but it is possible to do without as I did for this bed.

As you can see, you first plant your tomatoes in the middle of your bed (in my garden all beds are 4 foot wide) and may wait until they grow past one foot to do so.  You then "sandwich" your tomatoes between two walls of panels, set 30" apart to hold your plants as they grow further.  I raise the panels upward by 1 foot for easy access and mulching, which also gives me an extra foot of height and plant-support.

The picture on the right attempts to show you that this set-up can work on curved beds.  Mine  makes a 90 degree turn to the right in the back, but I manage to curve the trellis along.

last modified on: Sunday December 26, 2010 03:47 PM -0600