FAQ on Staking Tomato Plants
By Michelle Fabio
If all is going well with your tomato plants, soon you’ll be considering staking them.
If you need a refresher course on the process, here is list of frequently asked questions about staking:
What is Staking?
Staking is a way to physically support tomato plants as they grow.
Why should I stake tomato plants?
The two most important reasons you should stake tomato plants are:
• Staking provides physical support so tomato plants don’t break under the strain of fruit or inclement weather;
• Staking enables better air flow through tomato plants, which results in less internal moisture that can result in disease.
How do I stake tomato plants?
There are several ways you can stake tomato plants including single wooden stakes driven into the ground, frames, trellises, and cages.
How do I know which staking method is right for my tomatoes?
Which staking method you should use for your plants depends on the type of tomato as well as how many tomatoes you’d like to produce. For a description of the various types of staking methods, see Tomato Staking Techniques Evaluation at Master Gardeners.
Do you have staking tips to share?
May 20th, 2009 at 1:40 am
I find that staking tomato plants is important if you want to keep your fruit off the ground and avoid those marks you get if they sit on the ground.
For me it is more of a visual thing in the garden as well, they look a lot more tidy and attractive and lets face it we all want the best looking garden in the street.
Thanks
June 3rd, 2009 at 1:33 pm
Keeping the vines vertical is also a much more efficient use of garden space, compared to letting them sprawl. Same goes for any veg vine.
I find the “round generic” tomato cages mentioned in the article to be utterly useless for indeterminate tomatoes. (they are excellent, however, for supporting peppers or eggplants, in storm winds, for example).
A disadvantage to pruning tomatoes to single stakes is, of course, reduced yields. On the other hand I find pruning to a single vine increases earliness. Thus I use this method with five or six plants for earliness while the main crop grows unpruned in remesh cages for later but much larger yields per plant.
Buying staking ties is unnecessary, instead I cut strips from the wife’s old pantyhose – it is gentle on the vines, holds a knot well, and is reusable for at least a couple of seasons.
I also grow winter squash vertically (on fences or heavy trellises)and cut hammocks out of pantyhose to support the squash, tying the hammocks to the trellis where needed. It is particularly nice for this purpose because the hammock will stretch as the squash expands. Not a tomato comment, I know, but a handy trick that lets you grow the most space hungry plants of all in even a small garden by verticalizing them.