Cheapest way to support indet. tomatoes?

I'm living in the south-east UK and am growing large numbers of indeterminate tomatoes. As a result, I'm looking for a cheap way to support them without having to spend loads of money on fancy metal cages that cost a fortune. Can anyone recommend a cheap way of doing this?

I have lots of 6' bamboo canes. Would they work well enough? Or do I really need those metal cages for best results? If so, where's the cheapest place to buy them in the UK?

 

Nothing wrong with canes AE...and welcome to Gardeners Corner!

Steve...

 

Thanks guys! I am torn between canes and wire, but I think I'll try the latter. I'll buy some chicken wire/wire fencing and make cylindrical tubes for the tomatoes will grow in. I'll probably buy it from B&Q as they're usually quite cheap.

One problem though. If I'm growing in a greenhouse, I can't put ground stakes in through the floor. Would this be a problem?

It's good to be on a British site rather than gardenweb where us brits are in the minority.

 

I use a bamboo structure to support my toms, rather than individual, isolated, vertical canes. Like a shorter than normal 'A' frame structure as used for growing runner beans and with only one horizontal at the top where they cross over. I got fed up with individual canes working loose on my exposed site, and as they lean away from where I'm standing whislt picking I don't accidentally knock nearly as many unripe ones to the ground (find Sungold rather prone to this).

This (rather scrappy) diagram may explain my method better as it shows the double row of toms marked by X's which although staggered, meet where the top horizontal runs through:

 

Two points here..

1. Chicken wire will work out more expensive per plant than a single cane.
2. During your tom plants growth, sideshoots grow that need to be removed...a cylindrical thingymajig will get in the way of that...it'll also get in the way of picking fruits.

Line your plants up, one cane for each..tie your plant in to that, put a cane accros the top for extra rigidity as suggested by scrungee...simples!

Mine...last year







Steve...

 

i like that idea of growing along the the bamboo trellisy thingy. could leave it to keep growing. longer. thanks.im gonna give that ago

 

Brilliant! Thanks guys, you've solved the problem! And I have all the materials I would need right here at home.

Just to confirm, I can use the vertical canes in each tomato pot with one long hortizontal one at the top, as described, outside?

Also, how long is the hortizontal cane at the top? Would it be 6' or are there longer bamboo canes available somewhere that I can use?

 

could you grow cucumbers like that, im growing marketmoor.

 

For what it's worth - in my greenhouse, I do pretty much as Shiney. I've fixed an 'L' shaped metal bracket (with a hole drilled at each end) at each end of the greenhouse (secured with crop-head bolts), then I secure plastic covered wire through one, along to the first cane, wrap it once round the cane, onto the next one, wrap it round that, and so on to the other end where, with the wire paulled taught, it's secured through the hole in the other bracket. This way it never moves. Canes go either in the ground, in a growbag or into the individual pots (depending on my method of growing).

For outdoors, I use a similar method - I insert 3 canes around each plant and secure them to one another by running the wire around the canes at about 6" intervals, adding extra 'layers' as the plants grow. In this way I find the wires useful not only in supporting the plants, but they're handy to support the trusses as well.

Just as a BTW, take a look at Amazon where they're selling a 'Bosemere N505 Sweet Pea and Bean support' (fancy name - cheap price!). Yes, I know it's for beans and peas, but a neighbour of mine has rigged up a similar but 'home made' system - with a 'hole' in the top (look at the pic and you'll see what I mean about a 'hole'), to allow the plants to grow through - which seems to be very sturdy and working well.

 

I think that bamboo canes are not strong enough to support tomatoes, especially variety which grow quite large. If the plants are all in a row what about a structure made of a couple of strong branches placed horizontally a little away one from the other and securely held in place?

Other than that, the sort of garden fencing suggested by Marley.

 

I grow my toms out side in large growbags; the sunniest spot in our garden happens to be along our shed so they are grown against that. The tops of the canes are slotted between 2 nails tapped into the shed and then wired across; there's no way they're moving. They also get good shelter against the shed from most winds; we've had bumper crops for the last 2 years...