Pros & Cons of 3 Tomato Trellis Systems and Which Popular Method I DON'T Recommend

Описание: Tomatoes are the most commonly grown crop for gardeners, and we're always looking for new methods & techniques to get the most bang for your buck. Tomatoes can be grown in so many different ways, so we're going to explore some different options.

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0:25 Tomahook System
2:55 Cattle Panels Arches
5:31 Tomato Cages

Let's kick things off with one of my go-to methods: the Tomahook System. It's changed the way I grow tomatoes, and we've done several videos about it over the years.

It's a method that many commercial growers use because it really allows you to maximize space, and it makes harvesting & pruning very easy.

This is all about going up instead of out. That means it's easy to see the fruits as they ripen instead of hunting in a bush. As the plant grows, you unwind your Tomahook so you really have unlimited vertical space within the height of your t post or vertical supports.

PROS
-Orderly & neat
-Maximizes production
-Minimizes disease

CONS
-More setup work
-Small upfront investment
-Works with indeterminate (also called pole or vining) tomatoes only

Moving to another part of the garden, let's take a look at an arched cattle panel held in place by two t posts. This is a wonderful way to create a green tunnel in your yard, and it provides an infrastructure for a variety of plants including tomatoes.

As the plant grows, you can also use plant clips in this system to ensure it grows along with the supports. If they're still small and flexible, you can also wind the plant in and out.

PROS
-Ambience
-Less pruning required
-Fairly easy to prune & harvest

CONS
-Some work involved
-Larger upfront cost
-Still best for indeterminate varieties

Up next, we have Tomato Cages. This is the option I really don't recommend. It really only suits dwarf varieties. Other types will quickly outgrow the cage and get squished together which leads to issues. I don't really recommend this system if you are growing tomatoes. Even these determinate varieties are getting out of hand.

PROS
-Good for dwarf varieties but that's about it

CONS
-Too small for most tomatoes
-They're usually too small & too flimsy
-Too tight which invites disease & pests
-Hard to find tomatoes to harvest
-Harder to prune

However you grow tomatoes, they need some kind of system or trellis. Whatever system you choose to use (and we encourage trying out different methods to experiment and find out what works best for your plants and space) remember to prune, plant at the right time, and monitor over time.

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