The ONLY Way to Grow Tomatoes

Tomato cages, they're a total fail. Two to three tomatoes, maybe even four, weave the tomato in and out. The problem once again comes. So when it comes to tomato supports, we want to think about three particular features. You're going to get eight plants for the price of one. So I'll put one on this end of the trellis and this one on the other, all the way from the beginning of July to the middle of October. You're going to be shocked when you grow them this way. If you're still growing tomatoes on a wire tomato cage from the hardware store, this is your sign to level up. In this video, I'm going to show you why I'm convinced that growing tomatoes on an arch trellis is the only way to go. We're going to outline all the different trellising options when it comes to growing vining tomatoes. And then I'll show you exactly how to set up an arch trellis with your tomato plants so that you've got fruit all season long. So when it comes to tomato supports, we want to think about three particular features. First is space. How to make the most of the vining nature of these indeterminate tomato plants. Next, we want to think about accessibility. How easy is it for us to get to our plants to take care of them, to prune them, feed them, and of course, pick from them. And finally, longevity. How long can this trellis support this plant through the duration of its growth in the garden space? If you think about those three aspects, you'll immediately realize that tomato cages, they're a total fail. So most tomato cages are just going to be four to six feet tall. While they're great for supporting determinate tomatoes, those are the bush types. In this video, we're talking about indeterminate tomatoes, vining tomatoes. And for those, tomato cages are a big no-no. As the tomatoes continue to grow, the cages are going to begin to collapse. This happened for one of my first clients named John. We filled his garden with mushroom compost. The soil was so rich. And we planted all the tomatoes in these cages that he'd bought years before. I arrived to take care of his garden about a month after planting. And all the tomato cages had literally plopped over in the middle of the garden, completely covered in tomato vines. And I could hardly get to any of the plants, much less get to the fruit. Besides collapsing, tomato cages also make it really difficult to prune and take care of your plants. And the key to getting more production off your vining tomato plants is pruning. But all that cage, it's keeping the plants in and it's keeping you out. So when it comes to growing vining tomato plants, just say no to tomato cages. Now, there are three trellis types that I talk about in my book, Kitchen Garden Revival. And all of them can work for tomatoes. So first is the obelisk trellis. Somewhat like a tomato cage, but it goes up and in at the top rather than spreading out. Now, I love using an obelisk to grow tomato plants because it allows me to grow two to three tomatoes, maybe even four, all around the exterior of this obelisk. With a tomato cage, generally you put the tomato right in the middle of the cage. But with the obelisk, I want you to plant tomatoes around the exterior. Each of the tomatoes will be at least a foot to a foot and a half apart from each other root-wise, but they can all use the same obelisk trellis to climb and grow on. Now, the strength of this is you'll be able to tend the plants. They're all going to be growing to the exterior of the trellis. So you can prune them, tie them to the trellis and get great access. The issue is the longevity here. Because this obelisk trellis is only five to six feet tall, and it wouldn't be practical to have a eight, nine, ten foot tall obelisk, you're only going to get the vine to the top here. And then you'll have to trail the vine back down the trellis as you head toward the end of the season. This means it's going to get harder to maintain, take care and keep your tomato plant healthy the longer it grows in the garden. Now, the next kind of trellis you could use for tomatoes is a panel trellis. And this is going to give you the opportunity to use what we call the Florida weave method when it comes to growing tomatoes. Here, you'd plant tomatoes along the base of the panel trellis, spacing it about one foot apart from each other. And then you're just going to weave the tomato in and out of the panel trellis as it grows throughout the season. So this is going to make good use of your space. You can literally grow dozens of tomatoes down one line, planting on either side of the panel. It's also going to give you lots of accessibility. You'll be able to come in, prune the plant from both sides and be sure you're getting great aeration, great sunlight onto your plant as it's going up the panel. The problem once again comes with the longevity. So as these vining plants continue to go into day 90, day 100, they're going to reach the top of this panel pretty quickly, even if you have a six, seven foot panel. And then it's time to do what you have to do with the opalesque, which is take your vine and then start to trail it back down the length of the panel trellis. This doubles up all the leaves that you've got on your panel. It's going to decrease airflow, decrease your sunlight exposure. It's going to make it harder to tend, take care, and get lots of production on your tomatoes during what could be their most productive part of the season. Then we find ourselves with the final option, the arch trellis. And here is why I love it. First off, the space. Because of the way the arch is divided between two beds, you can actually plant up to eight tomato plants on just one arch trellis. Two here in front of the arch that are at least a foot apart, two behind the arch that are at least a foot apart, and then the same on the other side. You're going to get eight plants for the price of one trellis. Then the accessibility. As the tomatoes grow up this trellis, you'll have perfect accessibility to prune, to tie the plants to the trellis, and of course, to pick a ton of tomatoes. But finally, the missing piece in all the other trellis options is longevity. Because you have an arch that reaches six, eight feet tall and goes across to the other bed, you actually have at least 16 square foot of growing space, if not 20 or more. So as your vines continue to grow throughout the season, they'll reach the middle of the arch by mid-summer, but they can continue to grow as the temperatures cool off and they start to really produce lots of fruit because it's not so hot. They'll be able to continue to grow on the other side of the trellis without doubling back. In other words, tomatoes on an arch trellis checks all the boxes. So here's how to set it up. Now first, if you don't have an arch trellis yet, you can absolutely build your own with a cattle panel. You can get these from a place like Tractor Supply. Stick them in both sides of your beds, stake them up with some rebar, and boom, you got an arch trellis. If you want to up-level to a prettier, more durable kind like mine, you can find a ton of our arch trellises in The Gardnery Shop, and I'll put a link to those right below this video. Now when you're planting up your trellis, you want to put two to four on either side. This season, I'm going for two on each side. So here I've got peas that have been growing through the cool season, and this shows you just how versatile this arch trellis can be. These peas will continue to grow for another month or two while the tomatoes start to make their way up the arch trellis. So it's literally giving lots of production just from one little spot. Now I'll put these tomatoes as far apart as possible so that they have ample root room underneath the trellis, but they can also be attached to the same structure. So I'll put one on this end of the trellis and this one on the other, and then as they start to grow, every week or so, I'll come in and use a little bit of twine and tie the tomato to the trellis as it grows. Now twining is super important because tomatoes don't put out those little tendrils that grab and hold the trellis in a way that pull beans or cucumbers do. So you'll have to use twine each week probably is a good practice, but at least once every two weeks as the tomato starts to climb. And each time you go to twine the tomato to the trellis, make sure you prune a little bit as well to be sure that you're getting great airflow and lots of sunlight on the most important leaves and fruit. And then you just come out here, walk underneath your magical vines covered in cherry and grape and big juicy tomatoes, cut a few, bring them inside, and then come back the next week to do the same all season long. I'll have tomatoes hanging on this arch trellis all the way from the beginning of July to the middle of October. You're going to be shocked at how many tomatoes you get off of just one arch trellis when you grow them this way.