Cattle Panel Garden Arches, Trellises and DIY Tomato Cages

[@laurelcaccivio6651]

I made tomato cages like yours 10 years ago out of concrete reinforcement wire. I cut the bottom out so the wires anchor in the soil.

[@ourbackyardgarden]

❤

[@zoponex3224]

Love this! And your cheekbones are to die for!

[@ourbackyardgarden]

Aww thank you lol thanks for your kind words, and for being here!

[@TnCountryBoy]

So awesome.!!! We also wanted arched planting areas. The cattle panels are also $40.00 here in TN. Only a few friends with trucks, so we stopped that idea. Now we'll look for these wire rolls. Thank you for this vid.

[@ourbackyardgarden]

@@TnCountryBoy I'm so happy it helped!

[@seasonswithanthony5509]

I was at my local Home Depot today and there was a fresh truck of plants and I could not stop my self from looking. They had a Parker’s Wopper tomato which I have heard you talk so much about, and I’ve never grown it. I did not start it by seed either. So I picked one up! I’ll just keep it with my seedlings and plant with the rest!

[@ourbackyardgarden]

They really are excellent. They like to climb high and spread wide. How much are they this year?

[@seasonswithanthony5509]

At my Home Depot they were $5.48…. Pricy!! But I wanted to give it a try since they have been successful for you guys. If they do well in my space I will get seeds and do them next year by seed.

[@seasonswithanthony5509]

@@ourbackyardgarden I only got 1 plant, how many tomatoes do you Normally get off each plant?

[@ourbackyardgarden]

@@seasonswithanthony5509 omg so many. Produces until frost

[@llamabid]

What a great episode! Super informative! Thank you!

[@ourbackyardgarden]

Thanks for watching Valerie!! 2 more similar videos are being edited now, stay tuned!!

[@joanmerriken9216]

Love your easy manner of showing us how you have done your hog panels and tomato cages. Today we’re putting in our first two cattle panels, but your advice and ease of going thru these processes is so beneficial.!

[@ourbackyardgarden]

Awww thank you Joan! And it's so so nice to hear from you!!! We love trying new things and sharing it! We hope to hear from you again, happy growing 😊 ❤

[@loriw4054]

Great idea! Thank you!

[@gail7998]

Great info, Leigh! I'm viewing this video on 6/6/24

[@ourbackyardgarden]

Wow, I love that thank you 😊 ❤ this video is still our standard. We were making cages ladt night. It took 4cyears to go through the big roll of hog fencing.

[@BLESSINGHOPEANGEL12816]

This was great information! Thank you!

[@ourbackyardgarden]

Thank you for watching and commenting. I'm so happy to help!

[@BLESSINGHOPEANGEL12816]

@@ourbackyardgarden You dear did a wonderful job explaining to the point, and didn’t beat around the bush. Thank you very much for your time and insight! ❤️

[@AlsanPine]

i use branches to support my arches. it works very well. been using this method for decades. the branches last years.

[@ourbackyardgarden]

I love that idea it must look lovely 😍 thank you for watching and commenting. This comment brings value 👌

[@GrowingwithGlenna]

I love the idea of integrating branches into my arbors! What type of branches did you use and how long do they typically last?

[@AlsanPine]

@@GrowingwithGlenna i have used oak, maple, apple, pear, and many other fruit tree branches i get from pruning. the thickness of the branch makes a huge difference as, i presume, does your weather. i am in n. idaho. i have never had a branch not last into the 3rd year and some have lasted 5+yrs. i just weave them in the fencing grids. you do not want to use a dried up branch though. it is much easier if they are fresh and flexible. just a couple of branches weaved in on either side of the arch works fine with lighter loads and you can add more branches for heavier loads like grapes. i do not use them for my grapes though. for that i have built a huge trellis over my deck which is covered with 6 grape vines 🙂 also, if you wish to have your branches last longer, just torch them after weaving in. flame treatment of wood is a very old way of making "treated wood" that lasts a very long time. i do this especially with posts in the ground.

[@GrowingwithGlenna]

@@AlsanPine Thank you for the information! I'm going to be repurposing more cattle panels for trellises and arbors and wanted to incorporate more of a natural look.

[@AlsanPine]

@@GrowingwithGlenna yes, my orchard is very much that way. i use thicker branches for posts. i also have living fences. when not structural, branches last a lot longer and give a very nice natural look to the garden / orchard 🙂

[@johnsog337]

Great video of creative ideas. I just bought 2 - 16' cattle panels (about $36/each) from TSC. You can bend them into a teardrop and zip tie the ends together and they will fit into a 6'4" pickup truck bed with the gate closed. In the bed they are standing on the long side edge of the panel, so ratchet straps are a good idea to prevent them from tipping out as they will be 50" tall in the bed. Looking forward to my heirloom indeterminates covering the cattle panel arch.

[@ourbackyardgarden]

Hi John thanks for watching and commenting! We love cattle panels in the garden. Awesome arches cheap and easy!

[@seasonswithanthony5509]

Do you think zip ties would work with the T posts? My neighbor was throwing out all these unused zip ties a few months ago so I asked if I could take them. I am considering what I might be able to use them for in the garden.

[@ourbackyardgarden]

Yes. But they dry and crack over time. You just have to inspect from time to time

[@RovingPunster]

I live in suburban Long Island (NY) and it is oddly impossible to get cattle panels (in heavy 4 or 6 gauge welded wire) delivered here. I even tried the pro desk at home depot to special order them ... and struck out. I did find a TSC Outlet that's almost a 2hr round trip that has them, but they dont deliver either and since they wont fit in my car my only option seems to be to rent a pickup truck for 1 day, drive there, and tie the 3 panels into a teardrop so they fit in the bed ... and the panels are 33 lbs each. Fun fun.

[@ourbackyardgarden]

Hmmm I wonder where else you could find them. I need more also, but getting them home is quite tricky. I think most have to fold them in the tear. They are heavy and strong. Make sure you tie off in heavy strapping so you don't get hurt! The thinner Guage rolls do well if property framed and the roll goes far! Very versatile for making trellises and round cages!

[@RovingPunster]

@@ourbackyardgarden Yes, but as you demonstrated, thinner gauge means yhr arch cant support the weight of fruit. If I had to guess at a compromise between 4 (cattle) and 14 (chicken wire) I'd prefer to be on the low side of their average (4+14=18div2=9) that means 9 is iffy, and thus prefer 8 gauge or better. I already thought of that yesturday at home depot's pro desk, and we whiffed on not just 4 gauge, but also 6 and 8. I declined on searching for 9 as mentioned earlier.

[@ourbackyardgarden]

@@RovingPunster yes, I agree. I sure hope you can get them, they are worth getting home! Especially for arches!

[@RovingPunster]

@@ourbackyardgarden BINGO. I had an epiphany that's panning out. Instead of asking big hardware chains I tried a local animal feed outlet (ex: Agway) and it sounds like my nearest outlet sell em for $50 each plus a $25 flat fee to deliver.

[@ourbackyardgarden]

@@RovingPunster awesome!! Happy growing my friend I hope it all works out! So exciting 🙌

[@dustyflats3832]

Welcome to my world😂. I have to fence everything or I won’t have anything. Tools-a Kleins pliers is a necessity and T-post driver. We have a homemade drip ER and it is Sooo heavy I need to get a lighter one. The hog wire comes in different gauges and the heavier is like super heavy in weight, lol, ask me how I know. We fenced property with lighter weight in the back and then I purchased more for rest of acreage and Wow! 😅I don’t know how we did it, but after a few pinched fingers we got it rolled out and tucked between trees along fence line. Tomato cages should be called pepper cages as they don’t hold up tomatoes. I use them for peppers at times and even then they might not be enough. The cattle panels are great! I planted peppers on one side and tomatoes on the other and worked great. The hog wire would be easier to use and transport for many who don’t have a truck and attach to posts. We made a grape arbor out of 3 or 4 last year. I needed a shade spot in new garden/orchard area as it can get really hot out there with no trees or buildings. Now I hope the grapes take off as I had to move them as they just weren’t right where they were. That happens a lot. I envision something in my head, but in reality the space is smaller 😅. I planted bare root hazelnuts and didn’t see any planting instructions until I was done and I think I will be moving them as well. I was looking for a booklet, not a sheet of paper in the packing slip as I had many plants. Times change. This was a thorough look at options for those looking for plant supports. They are necessary when storms hit. Thanks! I’m sure your as eager to get plants in as us in freezing Z5a. By 5 am we should hit 28*F and then a warm up to more normal close to 60*F during daytime. And Farmer John wants his seat back at the table 😂😂

[@ourbackyardgarden]

Lol omg you are a bigger tornado than I am!!! It's even 14 hour days here. Today was super productive. New videos coming soon. Thanks so much for your wonderful support!

[@seasonswithanthony5509]

How far apart do you plant your tomatoes that get huge?

[@ourbackyardgarden]

If I'm pruning suckered 12bto 18". If letting them run, 2 ft. This year I'm doing the single stalk method and heavy pruning. I'm planting very close to squeeze in. The close with pruning bares less fruit but bigger ones. Suckers produce lots of tiny ones. More chance of disease and keaf footed bugs

[@seasonswithanthony5509]

@@ourbackyardgarden THANK YOU!

[@ourbackyardgarden]

@@seasonswithanthony5509 how is the greenhouse working out?

[@seasonswithanthony5509]

@@ourbackyardgarden great! I have been using it very similarly to the way of which you have been sharing that you are using it.

[@ourbackyardgarden]

@@seasonswithanthony5509 that's awesome can't wait to see your garden!

[@MrGapack1965]

Are you in Maryland?

[@ourbackyardgarden]

Hi Gregory thanks for watching! We are in nj!

[@jamesmccorkle8448]

invest in an angle grinder and some cutoff wheels. cutting cattle panel or hog wire is like butter.

[@ourbackyardgarden]

Thanks for the tip much appreciated! We haven't cut the cattle panel yet, but the hog panel cuts easy with snips. Easy enough for my small hands.

[@elizabethwait328]

If you're buying cattle panels, you'll be better off buying a bolt cutter for cutting them. Much easier!

[@ourbackyardgarden]

Thank you for watching. I agree with that! We aren't cutting them though. But we do cut the hog panel!