Gardening
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By
Annie Burdick
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Annie Burdick
Annie Burdick is a writer, editor, and gardener who has been covering a range of topics for publications like PEOPLE Magazine, Food & Wine, Apartment Therapy, and MyDomaine for the past several years.
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Updated on 06/01/23
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For beginner or expert gardeners, tomatoes are a staple crop. But, if you never used a tomato trellis, you might be missing out on healthier tomatoes and a substantially bigger yield. Trellising your tomatoes gives stems strong support to grow taller and produce more fruit. It also keeps leaves from reaching the ground, where they can be susceptible to diseases or pests.
Creating a trellis system is ideal for a large amount of space, a large plot of tomatoes, and for one who loves indeterminate varieties, which can grow tall throughout the summer and fall. If done right, trellises provide a dynamic look to your garden and ease harvesting throughout the season.
Thankfully, there is a range of ways to make a DIY trellis, either with supplies you can collect, repurpose, or find affordably at hardware and gardening stores. Let these ingenious gardeners and their practical tomato trellises inspire you to start growing your best tomatoes yet this summer.
Quick Tips for Growing Tomatoes on a Trellis
- Indeterminate vs. determinate tomatoes: These are the two varieties of tomato plants. Determinate plants have a set maximum growing height and stay relatively small, making them suitable for a classic tomato cage. Indeterminate varieties continue to grow and produce fruit throughout the season, only stopping at the first frost. They can yield massive harvests and require more space in the form of a trellis system to support them as they grow (up to 12 feet).
- Choosing tomato varieties: For small-space or container gardeners, smaller determinate varieties are a safe bet. If you have a large garden with plenty of room, you can ultimately get a much greater yield with indeterminate varieties.
- Why pruning matters: If you're aiming to grow massive, long-fruiting indeterminate tomato plants, regular pruning is essential, ensuring greater harvests and less risk of disease to your plant. As your plant matures, prune lower leaves to allow the plant's energy to focus on producing fruit.
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Create a Wire Grid
Fairly simple and efficient to pull off, this method involves creating a sequence of grid trellises alongside each row of plants, allowing them to grow upwards.
- Space out two metal stakes and insert them deeply into the soil.
- Wrap wire horizontally and vertically between the stakes to create a grid structure that offers great support to your plants.
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02 of 08
Combine Poles and Twine
For this method, you can combine some more common hardware store supplies, like long narrow poles (in this case they're about 6 feet long), a connecting piece of wood, plus some compostable twine.
- Brace two poles together in an A-shape and attach with twine.
- Do the same on the opposite side, then add a support pole or wood beam across the center.
- From that center beam, hang lengths of twine and then clip your plants to the twine as they grow taller.
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03 of 08
Create an A-Frame With Bamboo Poles
This method uses a classic A-shape as well, but uses bamboo poles for support beams. These are also available at most hardware and gardening shops, and should come in multi-packs to make it even easier. You can still incorporate twine, as is done here, but can also add a lower level of poles for extra support at the base of the plants.
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04 of 08
Get Creative
If you're going to DIY a trellis, why not get creative? This gardener opted to build simple ladder-style structures to accompany tomato plants—and even added bold colors for vibrancy.
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05 of 08
Opt for Overhead Support
This gardener's DIY trellis combines similar supplies as others—wood planks, long metal stakes, and string or twine. They created a rectangular trellis around their tomato patch, with a larger, structured grid of wireframe overhead. Strings can be dropped and clipped to tomato plants, leading them upwards.
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Use Clips for Added Support
Tiny clips can secure your tomato plant to twine or string on your trellis, and this string will guide your tomato in growing higher and stronger. You can pick up a pack of 250 clips on Amazon for a massive tomato patch.
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07 of 08
Try PVC Pipes for Support
Another sturdy method combines metal stakes with simple PVC pipes.
- Place stakes at the ends and middle of your patch and top them with PVC pipe. This creates an overhead support beam which you can run your twine from.
- Then, clip tomatoes to the twine as they grow for continued support.
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08 of 08
DIY With Sticks and Plastic Cups
This ingenious gardener got inventive with items common items. Their support beams are long, gathered sticks, lashed together in a similar A-frame. Extra support for young plants comes within plastic cups placed over seedlings.
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FAQ
Is it better to cage or trellis tomatoes?
If you're growing determinate varieties, cages work just fine. For larger gardens growing indeterminate tomatoes, cages won't be tall enough for the potential height of your plants, so a trellis system is best.
What is the best height for a tomato trellis?
Indeterminate tomatoes can grow 10-12 feet tall with the proper climate, care, and trellis. However, a trellis of 5-8 feet works well and still lets your tomatoes grow tall and strong.
Do tomatoes grow better with a trellis?
Yes, a trellis provides crucial support to tall, long-growing varieties. They also help keep leaves off the ground, preventing disease and providing crucial airflow throughout your plant.
What happens if you don't trellis tomatoes?
Without any support, most tomato plants will become too heavy, falling over sideways and reaching the ground, where their leaves will become food for bugs and pests. This means you might end up killing your plant, or at the very least, it will have a minimum growing and producing ability.
