# Acceptable Height for Tomato Cages?



## Windy in Kansas (Jun 16, 2002)

What do you consider an acceptable height for tomato cages? Should they be a minimum of 36", 48", 60", 72" or even taller?

The filthy dirty, extremely rusty, concrete reinforcing wire that I find locally to be unacceptable to me for use as cages. At the current rate of rust they wouldn't last long. Looks like the rolls were shipped in from China and continually sprayed with salt water bath.

I have found some other concrete reinforcing that comes in panels. It appears to me that those are varnished so won't be rusting at all for awhile. The problem is that they are only 42" tall. The old cages I used to use were probably no taller than that but that is all that was available at the time. I don't really recall that they didn't work.

Thoughts?


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## wy_white_wolf (Oct 14, 2004)

Some of mine are 3' tall and that's a little short for everything but a few dependent varieties. I have some that or 5' tall and that's about as tall as the season will allow anything to get here.


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## Marcia in MT (May 11, 2002)

We use the nasty, rusty concrete reinforcing wire cages and they are plenty sturdy and show no signs at all of collapse even after years of use and being stored outside in the winter. You might check to see if the stuff by you is truly damaged or only superficially rusty. Yes, they are not the prettiest but the tomatoes don't care, so I don't.

Height of cage needed would depend on the eventual height of the varieties being grown. Ours are mostly determinate or ISI, and a 48" (above ground, not counting the legs in the ground) are generally ok although they could be another foot taller. Indeterminate varieties will use up as tall a cage as you can give them!


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## Rickstir (Jun 28, 2006)

Ditto Marcia, we've had ours for 5 years and they look they will outlast me.


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## Windy in Kansas (Jun 16, 2002)

Wind in Her Hair said:


> I am STILL dreaming of a truck load of those fancy schmanshy TEXAS TOMATO cages falling off a truck in front of me.


I like the idea of the folding cage so that they can be stored inside out of the weather. I made plans yesterday for a triangular cage that folds. I think I'll buy material today for one or two and see how they turn out. I think I can make each for $2.50 to $3.50.

I may have to wind up using the nasty concrete reinforcing wire but for now it is too messy to put on my list. Besides that it is right at $100 for a roll. Wonder how long $100 worth of wooden stakes and twine would last? No doubt 10 times the work to install and remove.


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## turtlehead (Jul 22, 2005)

I grow my tomatoes on livestock panels hung from t-posts.

It's not ideal, because I have to tie the tomato plants to the livestock panel, but it does work.

I'd love some rusty nasty tall tomato cages.

For determinate tomatoes, I'd think 48" would be enough but for indeterminate, heck, they'll go above 72". But who can pick that high? I just let the vines drape back down.


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## two_barking_dogs (Sep 17, 2002)

concrete wire mesh here also. I have several hundred that are over 5 years old and yes sometimes a weld comes loose and the horozonital wire must be twisted but overall the best value for your money as I think we got approx 18 cages from each roll of mesh.


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## Paquebot (May 10, 2002)

There are many short determinates which don't need much more than 24". Then there are some indeterminates which wouldn't be entirely happy with 8'! Over the past decade, I've been slowly building up my supply of 48" cages. They will handle most of the indeterminates. That gives them 8'; 4' up and then 4' back down.

Martin


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## elkwc (Jun 3, 2007)

Mine are 54" I think. They are five foot but I stick 6" in the ground. And the rust doesn't bother me. The plants will go back down once they reach the top. I cage around 40 and let the others sprawl. Here I mulch the sprawlers heavy and they produce more picked fruit than the caged ones. JME. Jay


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