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Question about Tomato Supports
3 posters
Page 1 of 1
Question about Tomato Supports
I am going to be planting my tomatoes in the center 4 squares of my SFG. Do I need one support in
each square or can I put an Ultimato at the adjoing section of say 4
squares or even 2 squares and grow different plants from adjoining squares up 1 Ultimato?
I assumed I would
need one for each square and since I have 2 4' x 4' SFG's I would be talking about 8 Ultimato's, and at $9 a piece at Lowe's that's a little too pricey.
each square or can I put an Ultimato at the adjoing section of say 4
squares or even 2 squares and grow different plants from adjoining squares up 1 Ultimato?
I assumed I would
need one for each square and since I have 2 4' x 4' SFG's I would be talking about 8 Ultimato's, and at $9 a piece at Lowe's that's a little too pricey.
bripow(MI)- Posts : 19
Join date : 2010-04-25
Location : Macomb County, Michigan
Re: Question about Tomato Supports
bripow,
How deep are your tomato beds? I use Ultomato supports in a 12" deep bed, but the top 6" is Mel's Mix and the bottom 6" is amended topsoil. The topsoil being heavy and dense provides a good anchor for the Ultomato supports. I don't think this would be the case in pure MM as it is too light and fluffy. In that case something like a conduit trellis with a nylon net might work best. ... Another option for the Ultomato supports is to buy half as many and connect them as a long zig-zag type of fence. You'd want to place the plants in the 'V' formed at the zig & zag points. Something like this /\/\/\/\/\ . Those Ultomato cross beams are 13" and you get 3 rods per as you already know. Thus 2 Ultomato supports would give you 6 upright rods and 18 cross beams. ... To anchor in MM you could attach the upright rods at the end to the inside of your raised beds using those U-shaped clamps used for holding pipe/conduit to a wall.
That's my 2 cents. Got change?
How deep are your tomato beds? I use Ultomato supports in a 12" deep bed, but the top 6" is Mel's Mix and the bottom 6" is amended topsoil. The topsoil being heavy and dense provides a good anchor for the Ultomato supports. I don't think this would be the case in pure MM as it is too light and fluffy. In that case something like a conduit trellis with a nylon net might work best. ... Another option for the Ultomato supports is to buy half as many and connect them as a long zig-zag type of fence. You'd want to place the plants in the 'V' formed at the zig & zag points. Something like this /\/\/\/\/\ . Those Ultomato cross beams are 13" and you get 3 rods per as you already know. Thus 2 Ultomato supports would give you 6 upright rods and 18 cross beams. ... To anchor in MM you could attach the upright rods at the end to the inside of your raised beds using those U-shaped clamps used for holding pipe/conduit to a wall.
That's my 2 cents. Got change?
Re: Question about Tomato Supports
Thanks Tim. I do not have a hard bottom in my SFG so I could anchor the supports in the soil beneath the SFG. So if I am reading your post correctly you are saying assemble the Ultimato's only half as tall, spreading them out to cover multiple squares? And I assume not having the supports as tall will no encumber the growth of my vine plants?
Thanks again for the help.
Brian
Thanks again for the help.
Brian
bripow(MI)- Posts : 19
Join date : 2010-04-25
Location : Macomb County, Michigan
Re: Question about Tomato Supports
No that's not what I'm saying. The Ultomato cages are 5' tall. You can't change that. What I was saying is to not assemble them into triangles but instead connect the sides to each other to make a zig-zag wall. I really don't know how else to explain it.
Assemble two sections and connect them (3 upright rods @ 5' joined together with 3 of the 13" connectors) = /\
Assemble two sections and connect them (3 upright rods @ 5' joined together with 3 of the 13" connectors) = /\
Re: Question about Tomato Supports
I am also using the ultimato cages this year. There are actually two varieties floating around. The one I got at Lowe's for around $9 was a deluxe model that had adjustable arms that went from 10" - 14" (I think). The ones I got at Home Depot were $6.50 each. I also interconnected my units like Tim describes.
One of the things I like about the ultimato is that you can move the arms where ever needed. You can purchase the green supports separately so depending on how many supports you put in or how you connect them, you can add more supports if needed.
I don't think the height is quite high enough but I guess I will see. My tomatoes will probably grow over the top. Tim -- has this been an issue for you?
Has anyone used any other support system for tomatoes that they are especially happy with?
One of the things I like about the ultimato is that you can move the arms where ever needed. You can purchase the green supports separately so depending on how many supports you put in or how you connect them, you can add more supports if needed.
I don't think the height is quite high enough but I guess I will see. My tomatoes will probably grow over the top. Tim -- has this been an issue for you?
Has anyone used any other support system for tomatoes that they are especially happy with?
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