Forgot the cages...ugh.

[shaefins]

You know how it goes....got caught up in other things and never got around to caging the tomatoes I put in two weeks ago. Given the rain we had, some have gotten too big for me to get the cages around. I've not used stakes as support before. Can someone tell me how tall a stake I need, and if I can put a stake into a 5 gallon bucket without harming the plant? My varieties are:

Yellow Cherry
Mortgage Lifter
Black Krim
Rutgers
Eva Purple Ball

Thanks in advance!

[soil]

put the stakes on the edges, it wont hurt the plants. if you put 4 stakes you can tie string from stake to stake so the tomatoes have something to lean and grow on. make them around 4-5 ft.

[shaefins]

4 stakes...really? You mean the 1x1 stakes?

[Gov't Mule]

Cool....I'm growing Mortgage Lifters this year too (for the first time). Those were developed right down the road from me. Hope they do well....they sure look promising!

[gardenvt]

You can use stakes in containers with no problems. Not to worry about the roots because toms just keep making more.

I had not thought about using the stakes to make a cage - may try that next year.

I have limited my stems to three per plant so I am using 3 stakes per pot and tie the plant to the stake with the velcro ties.

[stella1751]

Shaefins, I did the same thing! Thanks for posting the question. I am going to take a day off from life tomorrow to devote to nothing but gardening: weeding, mulching, cage cramming. If I can't get those cages on them, I will definitely try the stake approach.

[greenstubbs]

If you bhave some type of fencing material you can use 2 stakes and tie the fencing to the stakes. Then carefully thread the stems thru a hole to help support or just tie the plant to the fencing as it grows. Careful no to break stalks as you do this. Good Luck

[davefromwestchester]

1"x1" stakes will do fine. With the twine securely wrapped around them, you are actually making cages from wood and fiber, rather than wire.
I ran out of supports this year, and did this in the ground, and the tomatoes are upright and easy to pick.

I totally endorse this method. Thought of it two weeks ago when I saw the prices of the cages at Home Depot. Four 6 foot bamboo stakes and some thin green coated wire and it's working great. Cast about 1/2 the price of a cage, a little ore work but kind of fun.