Tomato String for Lean and Lower

[jtjmartin]

Thanks to all that guided me through the string and lower method. I got most of my system up his weekend and cannot wait to grow the tomatoes "out in the open" for easier spraying, pruning, etc.

I used an A frame design my wife liked. I'll paint/stain them white this summer. I have another 30 feet to put up. I'm going to use 2X4X10 crossbars on that section along with baling twine.

Trellis by house_ed.jpg

DSCN0040.JPG

I'm still using some cages - it will be interesting comparing production.

cages.jpg

[FlyingZ]

Originally Posted by jtjmartin

Wow. This has been a great thread. I experimented with a few single stem tomato plants on vertical twine this past year and loved it.<br />
<br />
I just picked up some 3/4&quot; metal electrical conduit today. I'll use it as the top rail for a traditional A frame of 2X4s. (The garden is near the house and my wife has much higher standards for how things look than I do! She will go for an A frame but not all conduit.)<br />
<br />
I don't think orange or blue baling twine will work either so I will try braided mason's twine or look for white baling twine. We've been happily married for 29 years (out of 31 - the first two years were tough!) Need to keep her happy as I take over the back yard.<br />
<br />
I also plan to try out the tomahooks for lean and lower.<br />
<br />
Thanks for all the great ideas!

<br />
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I've been using the Orange bailing twine for years works great.

Sent from my samsung SPH-L710T Using Ez Forum for Android

[b54red]

I recommend the orange square bale twine also. I have used the natural twine and had it break with a loaded plant several times. It also has a habit of stretching when it gets wet and if it rains a lot it can breakdown before you get through needing it at full strength.

Bill

[jtjmartin]

I used a double strand of brown polypropylene on my plants close to the house thinking it might blend in better. I'll use the orange square bale twine on the long row further from the house and see if there is much difference.

I also started leaning the plants right away as Bill suggested.

[Gardeneer]

I wanted to use thicker stronger stuff but the problem is that the clips cannot accommodate them.

What do you think about this Mason Line twine ? It should be available at BBS.
I will look for it and try to replace the other stuff before it is too late.

[mikemansker]

I'm using the mason line with 165 pound break point. If I get a plant with more than 165 pounds of tomatoes, I'll take a picture.

[jtjmartin]

We had a brief break after days of rain here. It was so nice to walk down the rows of stringed tomatoes and snap the suckers off!

[jtjmartin]

BVV:

I finally had work by Berry Hill. I stopped and picked up tomahooks and way too many plant clips at a great price.

I'll start switching over my lines to tomahooks for lean and lower.

Thanks for the heads up.

[Nematode]

I'm pretty sure this is the only place on the whole internet with 8 pages of comments about string.

[jtjmartin]

Oh, yeah, I got some white string from Berry Hill too! 9 pages yet?

[Gardeneer]

Originally Posted by mikemansker

I'm using the mason line with 165 pound break point. If I get a plant with more than 165 pounds of tomatoes, I'll take a picture.

It is not just stringing , but lowering and layering also. So it is more technical than just plain stringing.

[BigVanVader]

Sweet, I'm wishing I'd gotten more than 100.

[mikemansker]

Originally Posted by Gardeneer

It is not just stringing , but lowering and layering also. So it is more technical than just plain stringing.

Thanks, Gardeneer,

I understand the process.

[mikemansker]

This is where the PVC trellis stands now. We've had a couple of wind events (one was 70 mph) and the trellis is holding up well.

The string is easy to manipulate and the plants are going to rotate around the whole structure.

They are bearing the weight of the tomatoes well and I haven't seen any signs of weakness in the system. The only issue I have with this is that I need for the tomatoes on the bottom to get ripe so I can pick them. There are 2 plants where I have had to use an additional string in the middle of the plant to keep the tomatoes off the ground.

[mikemansker]

This is a closer view. The pic always appeared sideways on the previous post regardless of what I did.