VEGETABLES
How to support your tomato plants
S
ummer on a smallholding is synonymous with
flourishing tomato
plants, so many are turning
their attention to how to
support the plants with their
growing burden of fruit.
Some permaculturists are in
favour of allowing the plant to
grow without staking or
training. They
maintain that
the plants
become
stronger, and
as the plant
spreads, it
sends down
new roots so it
is hardier and
produces
more fruit
than normal.
They recommend mulch
to protect
tomato fruits
QUIRKY
Bamboo “tepee” structure
that touch the ground.
But most vegetable experts
prefer to provide tomato
plants with some support,
particularly indeterminate
varieties, which grow like a
vine. Determinate varieties
will grow large like a bush
with their height being just
over a metre.
The reasons put forward for
“training” tomato plants
include maximising space,
making harvesting easier,
improving air circulation
which helps to prevent
diseases and creating visual
interest. Strategically placed
trellises can also provide
privacy screening and
afternoon shade.
Having decided to give the
plants support, you will
discover that there different
ways to do this.
The most obvious is to stake
each plant by driving a
wooden or metal post into
the ground and tying the plant
to it.
If you have a plentiful supply
of bamboo poles you can
construct teepees, using three
or four poles tied together to
form a cone around the plant.
Another version of the tepee
is to tie two poles together to
form an A, then sink another
pair about a metre away,
followed by a third. Then
place the last bamboo pole
across the top of the structure
in the “V” created where the
poles meet, connecting all the
teepees together. Tie twine
from one p