Why support tomatoes? When tomatoes grow, the stems can break under the weight of developing fruits.
Plants lying on the ground take a lot of space and are prone to pests and diseases.
Fruits touching the soil often start to rot.
If you want a healthy plants with a lot of fruits, it is necessary to provide some kind of support.
Why choose stakes? The trellis is not a correct type of support for determinate tomatoes, while stakes can be used for both varieties.
Stakes allow to plant tomatoes closer to each other than cages, saving space in your garden.
They allow easy access to the plants.
Cages get in the way when you trim or collect fruits, making the task more difficult and wasting your time.
They often turn out to be too small for a plant growing inside.
If not well made, they can break under the weight of the plant.
Stakes are cheaper and take less space in the shed when stored during the winter.
I use them for years and find them very convenient.
How to stake tomatoes? You need one 6-8 feet long stake for every plant.
Choose the sturdy, wooden on metal ones.
Set them up just after planting seedlings in the garden, as you want them to be in the ground before roots start growing.
Place the stake 3 inches from the base of the tomato and push it 1-2 feet into the soil.
Make sure it is stable.
The plant is unable to attach itself to the support, so you must tie it.
I suggest you use cotton strips torn from old clothes, as they do not cut into the stem.
Tie the strip to the stake.
Make that knot tight enough, so that the strip will not slide down on the stake.
Then loosely attach the plant.
As the tomato grows, add a new strips every 15 inches to provide a solid support.
How to prune staked tomatoes? If you grow indeterminate variety, remove all the growing tips between leaf and main stem (suckers) except the lowest two.
More than 3 vines on the plant would be difficult to tie and control.
When the tomato grows to the top of the stake, trim the top.
Now all the nutrients will be used for fruit development instead of the leaves growth.
If you grow determinate variety, prune suckers so that the plant stays close to the stake and does not grow into the bush.
After uprooting tomatoes remove stakes from the ground.
They last much longer when kept indoors during winter.
Plants lying on the ground take a lot of space and are prone to pests and diseases.
Fruits touching the soil often start to rot.
If you want a healthy plants with a lot of fruits, it is necessary to provide some kind of support.
Why choose stakes? The trellis is not a correct type of support for determinate tomatoes, while stakes can be used for both varieties.
Stakes allow to plant tomatoes closer to each other than cages, saving space in your garden.
They allow easy access to the plants.
Cages get in the way when you trim or collect fruits, making the task more difficult and wasting your time.
They often turn out to be too small for a plant growing inside.
If not well made, they can break under the weight of the plant.
Stakes are cheaper and take less space in the shed when stored during the winter.
I use them for years and find them very convenient.
How to stake tomatoes? You need one 6-8 feet long stake for every plant.
Choose the sturdy, wooden on metal ones.
Set them up just after planting seedlings in the garden, as you want them to be in the ground before roots start growing.
Place the stake 3 inches from the base of the tomato and push it 1-2 feet into the soil.
Make sure it is stable.
The plant is unable to attach itself to the support, so you must tie it.
I suggest you use cotton strips torn from old clothes, as they do not cut into the stem.
Tie the strip to the stake.
Make that knot tight enough, so that the strip will not slide down on the stake.
Then loosely attach the plant.
As the tomato grows, add a new strips every 15 inches to provide a solid support.
How to prune staked tomatoes? If you grow indeterminate variety, remove all the growing tips between leaf and main stem (suckers) except the lowest two.
More than 3 vines on the plant would be difficult to tie and control.
When the tomato grows to the top of the stake, trim the top.
Now all the nutrients will be used for fruit development instead of the leaves growth.
If you grow determinate variety, prune suckers so that the plant stays close to the stake and does not grow into the bush.
After uprooting tomatoes remove stakes from the ground.
They last much longer when kept indoors during winter.