The best tomato supports depend on your plant type: heavy-duty square cages (or cattle panel trellises) are ideal for large, sprawling, indeterminate tomatoes, while simple tall stakes or wire cages suit smaller, bush-like determinate varieties.
You can help the tomatoes as they grow by loosely clipping or tying them to the cage. Often, I put a wood or bamboo stake with each plant to help secure it while it's small. As they mature, the cage and close proximity to other plants will help prop each other up.
Regardless of what you might read or see in nursery promotions, planting tomatoes in October or November is not a fruitful experience, literally. The night temperatures are too low for the flowers to set fruit. Tomatoes planted in August or early September will grow quickly in the warm soil, warm nights and long days.
The best way to stake tomatoes depends on your garden size, but the single-stake and Florida weave methods are the most effective. They keep plants upright, improve airflow, and prevent fruit from rotting on the ground.
Yes, rebar makes excellent tomato stakes. Because it is made of solid steel, it is virtually indestructible, won't rot in the dirt, and can easily support heavy, fruit-laden tomato plants.
TIP #1: We recommend that you stake AND cage your tomato plants, regardless if they are indeterminate or determinate varieties ** The more you help hold them up, the less energy they will put into building their stalk, and the more energy they will put into building fruit.
Large concrete slabs, specifically those over four inches thick or spanning big areas, typically require rebar. This is to reduce cracking from shrinkage or extreme temperatures.
Wooden stakes (with optional tripod variation)
This is the tomato staking method that really involves stakes! You will need one tall (8'+ for indeterminate varieties), strong wooden stake (2″x2″) or one piece of stout bamboo for each plant. Bury the end of the stake deep enough into the soil so that it is stable.
Sprinkling baking soda around tomato plants is a common, often debated, gardening hack used to increase the sweetness of the fruit and reduce fungal disease. It works by slightly lowering soil acidity (raising pH) and, when used in sprays, creating an alkaline surface that hinders fungi like powdery mildew.
If you don’t stake tomatoes, the plants will become sprawling, unmanageable mounds of foliage. The fruit will likely rest on the soil, increasing the risk of rot, diseases, and pest damage from bugs like earwigs. While the plant may still yield, harvest is harder, and branches may snap under the weight of the fruit.
Never plant fennel, brassicas (like cabbage, broccoli, and kale), potatoes, or corn near tomatoes. These plants can stunt tomato growth, compete aggressively for nutrients, or spread devastating diseases and pests.
Coffee grounds provide tomato plants with slow-release nitrogen for leafy growth, trace minerals like potassium and magnesium, and beneficial organic matter. They also help improve soil drainage and can slightly deter pests like slugs and snails.
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Farmers support tomato plants to keep fruit off the ground, prevent diseases like soil rot, and maximize sun exposure. The most common commercial methods are the Florida Weave (string trellising) for large fields, heavy-duty wooden/metal stakes, and sturdy cattle panel trellises.
Encouraging the last few to ripen
The simplest is to bring them into a warm room and place them in a paper bag with a ripe banana or apple. Both release ethylene gas, which encourages ripening. Keep the bag loosely closed, check daily, and you'll often find the tomatoes take on full colour within a week.
Tomatoes are prone to magnesium deficiency later in the growing season, which can show with yellowing leaves and diminished production. Ultra Epsom Salt treatments at the beginning of their planting and throughout their seasonal life can help to prevent and remedy magnesium deficiency in your tomato plants.
To grow bigger tomatoes, maximize the fruit's size by pruning excess branches, restricting the plant to just one or two main stems, and plucking off early blossoms. This diverts the plant's energy into sizing up the remaining tomatoes rather than spreading resources across too many fruits.
The best homemade tomato fertilizer is a nutrient-rich, liquid compost tea. It delivers a gentle, balanced boost of essential macronutrients (nitrogen, phosphorus, and potassium). To make it, steep a shovelful of aged manure or compost in a 5-gallon bucket of water for 24 hours, strain the liquid, and water your plants.
Hydrogen peroxide can be highly beneficial for tomato plants if used correctly. It is a cheap, effective, and readily available remedy used to control fungal diseases, manage pests, and aerate waterlogged soil. However, because it is a strong oxidizer, using too much can damage your plants.
The cheapest way to stake tomatoes is using salvaged materials or cheap bulk supplies. The best budget methods include: T-posts with twine (the Florida Weave), repurposed wood, or single stakes tied with old cloth. Always install supports at planting to avoid root damage.
Even with the right ties, many gardeners make the tomato staking mistake of cinching them too tightly around stems. You want to provide solid support, but this actually weakens stems and can cause serious damage over time rather than making them more sturdy.
Building a DIY tomato support is highly cost-effective and often much sturdier than flimsy store-bought tomato cages. The three most popular and effective DIY setups are the Florida Weave (best for rows), the String Trellis (best for heavy, single-stem plants), and a Concrete Mesh Cage (best for large bushes).
Coca-Cola does three main things to concrete: it slows down the curing process (acts as a retarder), etches the surface to expose decorative aggregate, and removes tough stains. This happens because of the soda's high sugar content and phosphoric acid.
Water is the most common enemy of concrete surfaces. When water penetrates the surface of concrete, it can cause it to crack and weaken. This is especially true in colder climates where water can freeze and expand, creating even more damage.
The 90-minute rule is a longstanding concrete industry guideline stating that ready-mixed concrete should be completely discharged from the mixing truck within 90 minutes from the time water is first added to the cement. This limit ensures the mixture remains workable and achieves its full structural strength.