You still have a lot of time before your tomato seedlings are large enough and the weather is warm enough to plant them out. And since tomato plants of a certain size need support, you can use this time and build a climbing support for tomatoes yourself. Which materials are suitable and how do you use them reliably?
A good tomato trellis doesn't have to be expensive or complicated. A few wooden slats or bamboo sticks and even string can be enough to reliably support the plants.
A climbing aid made of bamboo for beds and pots
One of the simplest variants is the one with bamboo sticks. They are elastic, but also incredibly robust and stable, which makes them simply perfect for supporting plants. Use them according to your needs in the bed or for your potted tomatoes.
In the garden bed with bamboo supports
At the beginning and end of the bed, about mid-height, insert a bamboo pole deep into the soil. String twine between them.
Then build the climbing aids by sticking a bamboo stick into the ground on each side of the plants, then bringing them together and tying them together directly above the plant (creating an upside-down “V”). The yarn from the first two sticks should run along the intersection of the two sticks. Complete!
You can find ideas for cucumber climbing aidsin this article.
Build your own climbing aid for tomatoes in pots
Distribute bamboo sticks around the edge of the bucket and tie them all together at the other end. In windy conditions, the tomato plant is supported as long as it cannot be tied down yet. Later you use the sticks for binding. You can find a similar variant with instructions in the following video:
Build your own climbing aid for tomatoes from simple wooden strips
You can also make climbing aids for tomato plants from wooden strips. And in this case too, both for the bed and for thecompact potted tomatoesor raised beds. In the latter two, the plants should be arranged/planted in a row for this purpose.
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Idea for the wall
Insert a wooden strip vertically into the ground behind each plant. Now connect these vertical bars with horizontal ones. You can screw or nail them together at the interfaces or simply tie them with rope. About three rows at different heights should be enough. But you can also add more. You can then tie the stems to these strips at intervals.
Pyramid-shaped in the garden or raised bed
Since the beds are usually more open and are more exposed to winds, you can choose a somewhat more stable construction. As with the bamboo version, you first form upside-down V shapes from two strips. Also connect the tips with a long bar and then attach the horizontal slats.
How to build a tomato house, you canread here.
Use beams, wire and twine
If you design such narrow beds (60 cm wide), you can also build this simple climbing aid for tomatoes yourself. To do this, simply hammer impact sleeves into the ground at both ends (if the bed is longer, you can also set up three beams). It is important that they are the right size for the selected bars. Cut the beams to the desired length and place them in the inserted sleeves.
Drive a narrow wooden wedge into one side between the sleeve and the beam to secure the beam. Then drill holes in the joists at three heights. These should be at approximately the same height on both sides. Thread wire through a hole and stretch it to the other beam, where you put it through a hole again and tie it tight. Repeat with the other holes.
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The final step occurs once the plants have been planted in the bed. Above each tomato plant, tie twine to the three wires that run vertically down to the plant. Attach the lower end to the tomato with a tomato clip.
Check out the detailed instructions in the video.
Also read:Planting potatoes correctly: Helpful tips for a rich harvest in the vegetable garden!
