How To Make Tomato Cages: Big, Sturdy & Cheap

Learn how to make awesome tomato cages for 30% of the cost of those sold at the garden store.

If you've been to a garden store recently, you may have noticed that good grade tomato cages are selling for between $20-$30 each.  If you plan to grow ten tomato plants, that a $200-$300 investment. 

But there's some good news for DIY enthusiasts;  if you are willing to do 10 minutes worth of work, you can build a high quality cage for about $10.  Here's the materials list and the instructions:

Materials:

• 7 foot x 3.5 foot Mesh Mini-Panels - these are used to reinforce concrete in construction work and are available from home improvement stores like Lowes and Home Depot.  The wire is very sturdy and the openings between the mesh measure 6 inches by 6 inches, making it easy to get your hand into the cage when you prune or pick tomatoes.  Buy 1 panel for every cage you want to make.  Each panel should cost about $7.
• Double Loop Bar Ties - these are like the twistees that you use in the grocery store to tie off plastic bags, except for the fact that they are industrial strength.  You'll use these to fasten the two ends of the mesh mini-panels into a tube to form your cage.  You'll need 5 bar ties for each cage.  I think they are a few dollars for a package of 100.
• 3 foot long metal stake - one for every cage.  About $3.
• Plastic zip ties - two for every cage you want to make.
  

Tools:

• Bolt Cutter - This is a heavy duty wire cutter.  You'll need one to trim the mini-panels. (see photo)  It costs $20-$30 if you need to buy one.
• Bar Tie Twister Tool - a hand tool that makes it easy to twist the bar ties closed.  It will probably be sold in the same section of the store where the mini-panels and bar ties are sold.  Cost is about $7.
• Pair of work gloves.
• Hammer or sledge hammer

Directions:

To make the tomato cages, you will pull the long-ends of the mini-panels together to form a tube and connect them using the bar ties.  The detailed instructions are as follows:

1. Place a mini panel on the grass or driveway.  Step into the center of the panel and stand toward the top end of the panel.  Grab the edge of the panel along one of the long sides.   Using your feet and body weight to hold down the panel, bend the edge of the mini panel towards yourself.  Step to the side, grab the next section of the panel and bend towards you.  Continue until one of the long sides of the panel are bent towards the center. 
2. On the same long side, grab the panel 6 inches below the edge and repeat the same procedure as in step 1.  This one side should now be bent inward and be rounded.
3. Now move to the other long side of the panel and repeat steps #1 and #2 for this side. 
4. Pick up one of the long sides of the panel and bend it toward the other long side using the ground to hold the opposite side down.  At this point the panel will look like a tube.  You should do this at the top, middle and bottom of the panel.  When you are finished the panel should look like the letter "U." (see below photo)
5. Starting at the top of the mini-panel, grab both long ends and hold them together to form a tube.  Using your other hand, grab a bar tie and wrap it around the end of the mini-panel so that the loop of the bar ties are aligned.  Use the bar tie tool to twist the bar tie so that it fastens both ends of the mini-panel together. You do this by putting the pointed end of the tool through the loops of the bar tie and twisting.
6. Move down the mini-panel about 1.5 feet and repeat step #5. Do this until the entire mini-panel has been fastened into a tube. You now have a 7 foot high cage with a diameter of about 14 inches.
7. Using the bolt cutter, trim off the bottom edge of the cage so that you are "spikes" at the bottom to hold your cage into the soil. (see photo)
8. If you would like your cage to be less than 7 feet high, use the bolt cutters to trim the top of the cage to whatever height you desire.
9. Use a hammer to put a metal stake into the ground about 7 inches away from your tomato plant.
10. Place the cage over the tomato so that one edge of the cage touches the edge of the metal stake.
11. Use two zip ties to fasten the cage to the metal stake.  You now have secured the cage so that it can withstand the wind and the weight of all the tomatoes your going to grow this season!

If you decide to make your own tomato cages, let me know if you like them by leaving a comment.  If you have questions, also feel free to ask by commenting.

Comments

[Mater Mark]

Why do I get an error message, "cannot accept this data" when I tried posting a comment?

[Mater Mark]

Harbor Freight Tools has bolt cutters for less than 10 bucks.

I use 5ft x 10ft galvanized sheets, otherwise same gauge & 6x6 openings.

[Mark Delman]

Thanks for your tip on the bolt cutter. I purchased the mesh from Home Depot without shopping around very much. I like the idea of using the larger mesh sheets as it would produce a slightly wider cage.

[Mark Delman]

Hi. I'm not sure what the source of the error is. One of your comments did appear and I've replied to it.

[peio revuelta]

Tomatoes are one of the most common vegetables all over the world. They are quickly growing plants and are favorite among most amateur gardeners so as me.
I will start to grow tomatoes in my farm and now learning watever i can about them, thanks for information. I also
found another good site about tomatoes and so many other methods of agriculturing, i recommend you to take a look.

http://agricultureguide.org/

[H. Mark Delman]

Thanks for your comment. Good luck with your tomato garden this year.

[Julianne Bonnet]

Thank you for the tomato cage suggestion. I have three cages that I purchased at a nursery, all of which are in some state of disrepair. I look forward to putting your plan to use (and to putting my old cages in the junk pile).

[H. Mark Delman]

Ok, let me know if you have any questions. Im happy to help.

[Alice]

Have you tried the Japanese style tomatoe circle? It's a circle of wire mest, supported and anchored as you said, that is 3 to 6 feet across/around. The center is a dip (shallow) filled with compost and fertilizer; continue filling throughout the season with compostable stuff. The tomatoes, melons, etc., are planted around the circumference, and tied to the cage for support. Water and fertilizer, as needed, are added to the center of the cage. End of season, pull stakes, tip cage, and process compost for use.

[H. Mark Delman]

Hi Alice, I havent tried this technique before but it sounds similar to planting potatoes in bags where you progressively add soil to the bag and the plant sends out roots that become tubers. On first blush, this sounds reasonable enough. As with any of these techniques, the question always is whether the additional yield is worth the additional work. This is something I would be willing to test next year.

[Chris Meinholz]

Picked up 6 sheets of 6" x 6" opening concrete mesh from home depot at $7 a pop. This will give me enough fencing to make 3 per sheet or 18 cages for about 40 bucks after taxes.

Brilliant!

[H. Mark Delman]

Hi Chris:

Thanks for your comment. Im glad the posting was able to help with the tomato cages. Good luck with your garden this year.

Kind regards,

-PlanterTomato