Best Tomato Cages and Stakes for Determinate and Indeterminate Plants

Determinate vs. Indeterminate: Which Support Fits

The best tomato support depends on the plant’s growth habit. Determinate tomatoes stop at about 3 feet, so a short cage or a 4 foot stake holds them. Indeterminate tomatoes grow 6 to 10 feet and keep fruiting all season, so they need a 5 foot cage made of heavy wire mesh or a stake 6 to 7 feet long. The plant tag or seed packet states which type you have. Determinate vs. indeterminate tomatoes explains the difference if the label is missing.

The gap between those numbers is the reason so many cages fail. A cage sized for a 3 foot bush plant is overtopped by a vining plant before midsummer, and the weight above the top ring pulls it over. Buy or build for the height the plant will reach, not the height it has in May.

Tomato Supports Compared

Support	Best for	Size to look for	Plant spacing	Pruning
Short cage	Determinate	About 2 feet across, 3 feet high	3 to 4 feet	Once, when suckers are 2 to 4 inches
Single stake	Determinate	4 feet long, 2 by 2 inch wood	1 to 2 feet	Once, when suckers are 2 to 4 inches
Wire mesh cage	Indeterminate	5 feet tall, 18 to 23 inches across, 9 or 10 gauge	3 to 4 feet	Trim in July and August to keep growth inside
Tall stake	Indeterminate	6 to 7 feet long, 1 foot in the ground	1 1/2 to 2 feet	Remove suckers before they reach 3 inches
Stake and weave	Rows of either type	Stake every two or three plants, twine every 6 to 8 inches	18 to 24 inches	Light

Spacing is part of the decision. NC State Extension spaces caged plants 3 to 4 feet apart in the row, about double the 1 1/2 to 2 feet it gives for staked plants. A bed that holds four caged tomatoes holds roughly eight staked ones, at the cost of regular tying and pruning.

Determinate Tomato Cage: What Size

A determinate tomato grows to a compact height of about 3 feet and ripens most of its fruit within a couple of weeks, according to Oregon State University Extension. The load is heavy but short-lived, and the plant never climbs out of a modest support.

NC State describes a home tomato cage as a cylinder about 2 feet in diameter and 3 to 5 feet high. For a determinate variety the low end of that range is enough. Width matters more than height here, because a bush plant spreads sideways and a narrow cone pinches the branches together. A cage close to 2 feet across lets the plant fill out and leaves room for a hand to reach the fruit.

A stake also works. Oregon State notes that a 2 by 2 inch wooden stake is usually enough to support each main stem of a determinate plant, and Penn State Extension puts the length at 4 feet. Go easy on pruning whichever you choose. NC State’s guidance is that determinate types are usually pruned only once, when suckers are 2 to 4 inches long, because later pruning reduces the size of the plant and with it the crop.

Determinate varieties are also the ones that suit containers. For the pot, mix and support together, see growing tomatoes in 5 gallon buckets.

Best Tomato Cages for Indeterminate Varieties

Oregon State says indeterminate tomatoes need more room and stronger support, and describes a cage built from concrete reinforcing mesh. The mesh is stiff 9 or 10 gauge wire and comes 5 feet tall. Cut a length, bend it into a cylinder, and hook the cut ends together. The length you cut sets the width of the cage.

Length of mesh cut	Cage diameter
5 feet	About 18 inches
5 1/2 feet	18 to 20 inches
6 feet	About 23 inches

Those figures come from Oregon State and NC State. To anchor the cage, cut away some of the horizontal wires at the bottom so that 6 inch spikes remain, and push those legs into the soil. A full roll of mesh, about 150 feet long, yields approximately 30 cages, far more than one garden needs, so a shorter length bought by the foot is the practical purchase.

If you are buying a ready-made cage instead, use the same numbers as a checklist. Look for 5 feet of height, a diameter of 18 inches or more, and wire heavy enough that the cage does not flex when you push on the top ring. Check the openings as well. The University of Wisconsin notes that hog wire, woven wire panels and concrete reinforcing wire come in a 4 inch square grid, and the University of Georgia recommends livestock fencing with 4 to 6 inch squares. An opening in that range lets you pull a ripe tomato through the side. Georgia goes wider than the others on diameter, advising a minimum of 3 feet across for cages made from fencing, which suits unpruned plants in a bed with room to spare.

An indeterminate plant will still reach the top of a 5 foot cage and keep going. Oregon State’s answer is to prune in July and August to keep growth inside the cage.

Tomato Stakes: Length, Depth and Tying

Staking takes less space and costs less per plant than a heavy cage. It asks for more attention through the season. The numbers from the extension guides line up well:

1. Choose a stake 6 to 7 feet long for an indeterminate variety or 4 feet for a determinate one. Wood, metal and plastic all work, and Georgia rates metal T-posts as the most durable.
2. Drive it about 1 foot into the ground, 3 to 5 inches from the plant. Georgia allows 6 to 12 inches of depth depending on the soil.
3. Start tying when the plant is 10 to 12 inches tall.
4. Add a tie about every 8 inches up the main stem as it grows.
5. On indeterminate plants, break out suckers before they grow to 3 inches long.

Use soft ties. Oregon State suggests old nylon stockings or strips of fabric, which will not cut into stems, and NC State says to tie stems loosely with soft twine or cloth. Wire and thin string dig in as the stem thickens.

Stake and Weave for a Row of Tomatoes

When you have a whole row, the stake and weave method, also called the Florida weave or basket weave, supports many plants with a few stakes and a ball of twine. Penn State Extension gives the full procedure.

Space plants 18 to 24 inches apart in the row. Drive a stake after every second or third plant, 1 foot into the ground, and use a sturdier metal stake for every fourth or fifth one so the row has a backbone. When the plants are about 12 inches tall and before they flop, tie twine to the end stake 8 to 10 inches off the ground. Run it down one side of the row, looping it around the back of each stake, then return along the other side so the stems are held between two walls of twine. After a week or two of growth, add another layer 6 to 8 inches above the last.

Use 4 foot stakes for a row of determinate tomatoes and 6 to 7 foot stakes for indeterminate ones. The method is at its best with bush types, since the weave ends where the stakes do.

Put Supports In at Planting

Install the support on the day you transplant. Wisconsin’s advice is to cage plants at planting and train the vines to the inside of the cage as they grow. A stake driven later goes through roots that have already spread, and a cage lowered over a sprawling plant snaps branches on the way down. Oregon State suggests having homemade cages finished by April, before planting begins, so they are ready when the weather is. For the planting date itself, see when to plant tomatoes outside by soil temperature.

Once the plants are in and supported, steady moisture does more for the crop than any further hardware. How to water tomatoes covers the routine; NC State puts the need at about 1.5 inches of water a week during fruiting.