Tomatoville® Gardening Forums - View Single Post - 5 gallon buckets

kilroyscarnival · April 6, 2013

I bought some galvanized tomato cages for my first bucket-grown tomatoes - two Global Bucket SWC's and some commercial black plastic containers. I'm still figuring out a lot of what I'm doing, and I had pruned the Jaune Flamme and Lollipop cherry plants to one main stem, then let them branch out a little. The Egyptians in the GB's, I initially let grow wild in the cages without pruning. but they didn't seem to grow very straight initially.

I'm finding the JF and Lollipops are climbing well over the tops of the cages and am not sure whether they need different support, how to extend it (put another cage on top?), or should I snip the stem ends? I added some of those 6 ft fiberglass rods I bought at Skycraft, for a little additional support.

I transplanted some of the 'mystery' (Rainbow Beefsteak seed mix) toms into those tall black containers. I did the fiberglass stake for now, but am trying to figure out what works best. That early thunder/wind/hail storm made me realize that the staked plants held up better, and we'll be heading into summer storm season soon.

April 6, 2013	#1
kilroyscarnival Tomatovillian™ Join Date: Oct 2012 Location: Orlando, FL Posts: 614	5 gallon buckets - cages or stakes? I bought some galvanized tomato cages for my first bucket-grown tomatoes - two Global Bucket SWC's and some commercial black plastic containers. I'm still figuring out a lot of what I'm doing, and I had pruned the Jaune Flamme and Lollipop cherry plants to one main stem, then let them branch out a little. The Egyptians in the GB's, I initially let grow wild in the cages without pruning. but they didn't seem to grow very straight initially. I'm finding the JF and Lollipops are climbing well over the tops of the cages and am not sure whether they need different support, how to extend it (put another cage on top?), or should I snip the stem ends? I added some of those 6 ft fiberglass rods I bought at Skycraft, for a little additional support. I transplanted some of the 'mystery' (Rainbow Beefsteak seed mix) toms into those tall black containers. I did the fiberglass stake for now, but am trying to figure out what works best. That early thunder/wind/hail storm made me realize that the staked plants held up better, and we'll be heading into summer storm season soon.