Staking tomatoes is not obligatory, however, the operation offers many advantages that you wouldn’t want to miss out on! Indeed, tomato plants easily bend under the weight of their fruits, and installing a stake helps them stand upright, making it easier to harvest ripe tomatoes. Not to mention that the further the fruits and leaves are from the soil, the better their chances of avoiding diseases and parasitic attacks.
You can easily find a wide range of ready-to-use stakes in stores. However, despite their simplicity, the purchase price of these accessories is often high, which prompts many gardeners to make their own tomato stakes! Here’s how to do it...
Materials for making tomato stakes
Wood, bamboo, metal, string... When it comes to materials, you have plenty of choices for making your tomato stakes.
Bamboo, hazel branch, spiral metal stake.
Making bamboo stakes
The straight canes of bamboo offer both lightness and rigidity. Bamboo proves to be a perfect material for staking your tomato plants. However, its smooth surface can cause ties to slip. It’s better to use bamboo for making V-shaped or teepee stakes (details in the following paragraphs).
Making wooden stakes
If you opt for wooden stakes, ensure the wood is sturdy and water-resistant:
- hazel produces branches that are straight, light, yet very strong;
- rich in tannic acid, chestnut is a naturally rot-resistant wood;
- acacia is known for its durability.
Making metal stakes
Highly weather-resistant and sturdy, metal rods make excellent tomato stakes. Commercially, steel and aluminium are used to make spiral stakes, but for DIY metal stakes, reinforcing bars are a better choice. Indeed, unless you have metallurgy skills, it’s not possible to make a spiral stake yourself.
However, iron rusts when exposed to water. Metal materials are therefore not the best choice for making your own tomato stakes.
Making stakes with rope
This type of stake is mainly used in greenhouse cultivation. Here, ropes are suspended vertically above the tomato plants, which are trained to grow around them.
Height to consider for tomato stakes
With a height between 1.50 and 1.80 m, most commercially available stakes are too short for many tomato varieties. The gardener is then forced to unnecessarily top their tomato plants.
Therefore, prefer making stakes with a height of 2.50 m to accommodate the growth of all your tomato plants.
Making a simple tomato stake
The simple stake is undoubtedly the most commonly used by gardeners, as it consists simply of a rigid, straight pole planted in the soil, to which the tomato plant is tied. Moreover, this type of stake is perfectly suited to all fruits that need staking.
Tomato plant and simple wooden stake.
The only requirement is to choose a pole at least 3 cm in diameter and 2.50 m tall.
For materials, DIY simple stakes are mainly made using bamboo canes or long hazel branches.
Making a V-shaped stake for tomatoes
The V-shaped stake is made using simple stakes arranged in a line of inverted Vs (Ʌ).
To make your own V-shaped stake:
- create two facing lines of simple stakes planted vertically in the soil, spaced 50 cm apart.
- Tilt the stakes and tie them in pairs using twine, string, or wire, to form several inverted Vs.
- Place then a long horizontal stake at the top to connect all your stakes together.
Example of a V-shaped stake made with bamboo canes.
Note: The V-shaped stake is particularly suited to bushy and sprawling tomato varieties. It provides a perfect structure for tomatoes, as well as for peas and beans.
Making a teepee stake for tomatoes
As the name suggests, teepee stakes are shaped directly inspired by the conical tents once used by Native Americans.
This type of staking, particularly sturdy, consists most often of three poles made of wood or bamboo:
- plant your poles in the soil 50 cm apart, forming a triangle.
- Tie them securely together at the top using twine, string, or wire.
Tomato teepee stake ©Rhonda Fleming Hayes - Flickr
Note: To further strengthen the structure, consider adding a fourth pole. This will create a homemade teepee stake particularly suited to windy climates and large-fruited tomato varieties.
Making a cage stake for tomatoes
The cage stake, also called a wire stake, is more suited to greenhouse and open-field cultivation. Indeed, though practical, it takes up a lot of space, which isn’t ideal for small gardens.
A tomato cage stake should measure at least 1.50 m tall and 60 cm wide. For its construction, preferably use sheep fencing or recycled wire mesh.
Example of a tomato cage stake
Find all the details on how to build a tomato cage in Virginie’s tutorial dedicated to this technique.
The advantage of this type of stake is that the branches and stems of your tomato plants weave through the mesh, significantly reducing the need for ties.
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