10 Ideas For Homemade Tomato Cages (Cheap & Easy)
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Tomato cages are one way of supporting the long growing vines of indeterminate tomatoes, but there are serious limitations to store-bought tomato cages including their small size, flimsy construction, and the price. At $10-50 per tomato cage, it can get really expensive to buy enough cages for all your tomato plants.
I know, theoretically, you could use them every year, but the reality of that is not quite so simple. Tomato cages are often damaged from inserting and removing them from the ground. The welding on the wire will come apart after a couple of years of use, and their bulky size and shape make them inconvenient to store from year to year.
But you can make your own tomato cages pretty simply.
In fact, there are many ways to create tomato cages for your garden that are fairly simple, inexpensive, and attractive. Take a look at these 10 different ways to DIY tomato cages that I found.
1. Make tomato cages from cattle panels
If you have someone to help you, then using cattle panels (16 foot long pieces of sturdy welded wire) make great tomato cages. Here’s a straightforward tutorial for building a tomato cage from hog wire.
2. Make a cage/stake hybrid
The stake-a-cage a combination of a stake with wire panels is easier to access than a traditional cage. Learn how to make your own at Old World Garden Farms.
3. Wood frame tomato cages
Small wooden tomato cages like these are great for determinate plants. They’re simple to make, sturdy, and inexpensive. Find the tutorial at Ella Claire Inspired.
4. A DIY obelisk would be great for supporting tomato plants.
For indeterminate tomatoes, you need to build something pretty tall. This 6-foot wooden tomato tower is very attractive. Learn to make your own at Flower Patch Farmhouse.
5. Use PVC to make an easy tomato cage
PVC is lightweight and easy to work with. I Dream Of Eden has a great tutorial to make your tomato cages from PVC.
6. A folding tomato ladder
This homemade tomato cage is attractive and folds away for easy storage in the winter. Find this tomato ladder DIY tutorial at Mother Earth News.
7. A tomato teepee
The teepee tomato cage is super simple and just look at how cute it is! Learn how to make a tomato teepee at The Elliot Homestead.
8. Simple stake and twine tomato cage
Simpl7 tie some twine around a few stakes to make your own tomato cage. See how to make this stake and twine cage at My Home Ideas.
9. Beautiful bamboo tomato cage
These bamboo tomato towers look great in the garden. Bamboo tomato cage DIY at The Painted Hinge
10. One cage for all your tomatoes
Making one tomato cage for all your tomatoes sounds like a great idea! This one is simple but effective. Learn how to make it at Mosaic Gardens.
Putting together a tomato cage doesn’t have to be expensive or complicated.
Tomato plants are healthier and produce more fruit when you can keep them lifted off the ground.
Learn more tips for growing delicious tomatoes
If you simply don’t have time to make your own, you can certainly buy them at your garden supply center. I’ve used the spiral stakes before and they actually did okay as long as I kept up with pruning. When you’re shopping for tomato cages, go for the biggest, sturdiest one you can find.
Have you ever made your own tomato cage?
I’d love to hear your ideas. Leave me a comment below.
I have made supports from bamboo poles. Last yearnni made the tent style with 2 by 2s with a bolt top with a wing nut. Screwed that between beds. Put cattle panel on it with chicken wire over that. It makes a great support for climbers or verticle gardening tomatoes, cukes, etc.
That’s a great idea! I bet it was beautiful!
Hi Laura!
Thank you for compiling all of these tomato cages in one place! There are a lot of good ideas.
I am looking for a tutorial on the cattle panel tomato cages and clicked on your link for the tutorial at Rodales Organic Life and it sent me to Good Housekeeping!
Do you think you could find the link that works and send it to me? Take care and thanks again! Jovane’
Hi Jovane! It looks like that url is broken. Thanks for letting me know! I’ve replaced it with another great tutorial by Joe Lamp’l. Here it is: https://www.growingagreenerworld.com/ultimate-tomato-cage/
Very nice, but the cost is almost $50 per unit using current prices from Home Depot!
Oh no! That’s not cheap!
Try using reclaimed wood from pallets then the cost is close to zero
I used concrete reinforcing screen. Already cut to half size from Lowe’s. They’re easy to roll into a cage shape and last for years. Mine are going into their 3rd year with no failures. Much less expensive, and a lot easier to work with than cattle panels.
Great tip! Thanks, Rodge!
I’m just adding to my cage as plants grow, using sticks I find in the yard and twine. It’s rustic 😁 and effective
Really good ideas.
I’ve decided not to use the old metal ones I’ve been using for years but didn’t want to spend the money in new ones.
Thanks for the ideas on what direction I can go to make my own.
I just tried this last year works great
Hi I am going to try using an old clothes airer. The kind that you told up. I just wondered if anyone tried using anything similar, and had any success with recycled items used as supports
I’ll be making trellises of various sorts for my garden. We expanded our garden, as we do yearly, and like cheap to free if possible. It’s that time of year people are pruning trees so I find big piles at the edge of the roads. Lots of freebies. Using willow tree for lashes on some. Many design and easy. My 14 yr old needs to do various skills fit his ADST course so free help. 😜
I just tried this last year works great