The BEST DIY Tomato Cage! Heavy-Duty and FOLDS FLAT!

[@gardengrower7633]

Whatever you take for energy, I need some of that stuff. You're pumped to the max. lol

[@mgoh1984]

He seems normal at .75 speed

[@IAMGiftbearer]

Great idea! I did something similar for my special Purple cherry tomatoes that are in my back yard. I built an exterior round fence with welded wire fencing and white 1/2 inch tubing wired to it at the bottom to hold its shape and to keep the dog from chewing the plants up or trampling them. Each plant has a central stake that stands about 6 feet high. Then when the tomato plants grew above the height of that enclosure I made some smaller tomato cages out of the same welded wire that were 12 squares 12 squares. These are big enough to contain most of the plant and hold it upright and quite sturdy. I made two layers and stacked them on top of each other wired together, and wired to the exterior round fence. For extra durability in case of high wind storms I put two bamboo poles on either side of the tomato cage. Each is wired to the central stake and to the cage. It is so solid I have to shake hard and bang on it to get some movement and pollinate!

[@jon_web]

I'm sold! Its a brilliant idea that I will implement.

[@WhitepepperFarmshomestead]

Wooooo!!!!

[@aliciaspears7847]

Every time he says cattle panel - take a shot. J/K you'd be dead lol. this is a fantastic idea !

[@WhitepepperFarmshomestead]

😂 oops! Hey thanks!

[@aliciaspears7847]

I'm just messing with you. Great content as always !

[@WhitepepperFarmshomestead]

I welcome it, I can laugh at myself when I need to 😂😂😂

[@benpekarek382]

​@@aliciaspears7847lol, that would be rough!

[@kellywilliams529]

I literally told my husband I was going to start a drinking game because he said “cattle panel” so much!

[@mamokamika4212]

I used 8’ and 16’ cattle panels and put them up on T posts 18” above the ground. When I plant tomato plants I space them 18” to 24” (2 feet) apart. Trim suckers to keep 2-3 leaders and old leaves on bottom. As they grow, I weave them in and out of panels to secure them, trimming to remove extra leaves for extra air flow, bouncing/tapping on blooms gently for more pollination yield. The tomatoes are huge and so many. I love Cherokee purple and anything heirloom due to their high cost at grocery stores. I have been growing the tomato plants this way for 5 seasons without any issue. Seems like a lot - it’s not. I do all these while watering the garden bed. Takes a few minutes to keep garden neat. It’s my therapeutic corner. Can’t be stressed out when I am out there.

[@WhitepepperFarmshomestead]

I’ve wanted to try that for a while now! Are you growing them up the 4 foot end or the taller 8 foot side??

[@mamokamika4212]

The trellis height is the cattle panel width (4’) + 18” ==> roughly 6 feet tall. For 8’ length panel, I have 2 T Posts holding it up 18” above ground- growing 4 tomato plants. 16’ length panel by the fence with the neighbor - I have 3 T posts holding the panel 18” off ground.

[@mamokamika4212]

I have one more tip to share regarding tomato plant suckers removal. Don’t pinch them off close to the main stem, they will grow back. Wait until they grow out a little bit enough to leave them 2-3 “ long after being trim/pinch off. This way they won’t grow back. Hope you have a wonderful gardening season with high yields.

[@wescraven2606]

How do you secure the cattle panel to the T post to keep it from falling down?

[@KristinKanan]

I love this. So much easier than building them out of wood. I need this right now as my tomatoes are really tall and unstable. Thanks!

[@ABlueDahlia]

Easy if you can get cattle panels to your house.

[@KristinKanan]

@@ABlueDahlia I would have to cut it to get it into the car but that is easy enough.

[@sallyeblen7032]

Great thinking !! I love it.

[@WhitepepperFarmshomestead]

Hey thanks!!

[@CrystalLifeAfter40]

That dance I love it😂❤

[@WhitepepperFarmshomestead]

I was just so happy 😂!

[@elizabethweaver3103]

Love this

[@WhitepepperFarmshomestead]

Hey thanks!

[@johnkuveke9749]

Great video!! simple and looks easy to make. Bonus…it folds!! Great for determinates for sure! would be a neat experiment for indeterminates. Thankyou for the knowledge and advice!!

[@babyneticsllc4385]

Love your idea thanks

[@WhitepepperFarmshomestead]

You’re welcome! Thank YOU for watching!

[@JamesWells-w5w]

Loved this, Thank you!

[@WhitepepperFarmshomestead]

Thank YOU for watching!

[@Phyllistinegm]

Love this idea; I think this what I’ve been looking for; I love you’re enthusiasm! Thank you. Oh, and did you call your wife a cougar? If you did, I found it hilarious; it would show what a great relationship you have.

[@WhitepepperFarmshomestead]

Well I’m happy you found it! I definitely did 😂. I just love her!

[@iwanttobelieve5970]

Awesome!!!

[@WhitepepperFarmshomestead]

Hey thanks!!

[@mcraw4d]

Might work for some but think the L one’s are more versatile. 1) They stack very easily whether on the ground or standing up against the wall. I put two eye hooks on each side of where I stand them against the wall with a bungee cord and they’re not in the way. 2) I can also put them zigzag, end to end to make a trellis for beans, cucumbers, etc. 3) I also lay them down over rows of seedlings or lettuce to drape frost cloth over to protect them 4) lay them over seedlings to drape shade cloth over when I have not fully hardened them off. I do like the idea of the stakes and hog rings. I use long rebar or tomato stake poles and zip ties but the hog rings would work as well if I wanted to leave them up for more than one season.

[@louisguagenti6600]

After you cut, what about the sections that are open ended? I’m confused. When you connected the pieces they were all closed.

[@gordomctavish6599]

My exact question! You kind of glossed over that issue. Every panel is going to be open on one side.

[@sameoldmphymel]

Pm pretty sure he's cutting them off, I use those for making hooks to hang stuff from the joists in my shop, I don't throw anything away, lol

[@sameoldmphymel]

I have thought about doing the same thing, but cattle panels are too expensive for this tight Cajun. I'm thinking about doing it with hiway mesh, I'm using concrete wire cages now but cylindrical. My new idea is to zigzag flat rigid hiway mesh and plant tomatos in the corners of the zigzag. To hold them in, I can slide sticks between the mesh grids to capture them. I do something similar now by alternating the cages I use and plant a plant between them, and us sticks in the same way.

[@PrettyAliceNight]

Great idea!

[@WhitepepperFarmshomestead]

Hey thanks!

[@ourv9603]

YEARS AGO I used remesh, a wire cage used to reinforce concrete instead of rebar. Its real similar to cattle panel and back then was affordable @ less that $10 for a 4ft X 7ft remesh. I simply brought the short ends together & tied. They worked perfectly. But now, they are $20ea so no go. !

[@elisabetk2595]

Also they rust, and eventually get shorter and shorter if you make tines that go into the soil. Been wanting to make the long-wise one in two l-shaped pieces for years, but haven't figured out how to transport panels in a Prius.

[@taz6122]

Could have use the pieces you cut off for rings after some quick fabrication 😉

[@KLFaber]

This is worthy.

[@WhitepepperFarmshomestead]

Hey thanks!

[@LexKaiNix]

Just added some cattle fence to my list 😂

[@VoicesrilankaSinhala]

You can cut the bottom and bend it towards the ground so it wont shorten the cage and it will act like a good pegs to push it to the ground.

[@TheTamrock2007]

Curious how you like using these after a year.

[@bryangulledge]

Why not cut the cattle panel length wise instead vertical? You could just cut it to the height you want. It could be 16 ft high. I might try this next year, im tired of doing the work of the single stem method.

[@WhitepepperFarmshomestead]

I thought about it but I needed a lot of cages quickly and we aren’t growing too many that would get 8+ feet tall 😂. But absolutely, might be something I do next year!

[@louisguagenti6600]

Nice idea, but deceptive. You didn’t address the wasted pieces. Expensive.

[@vinivv]

yep i was putting away my cat and dog cage and realized it would make a great cage just remove top and bottom LOL

[@bs4638]

Am i missing something? When you cut like that, you will have one square going to waste, and you would have to remove that whole column. Good idea though, and easily foldable for storage.

[@ditch9802]

Cattle Panel. Cattle Panel. Cattle Panel. Cattle Panel. Cattle Panel. Cattle Panel. Cattle Panel.

[@WhitepepperFarmshomestead]

Cattle panel everything.

[@jtaylor9815]

I'm glad I'm not the only one haha. Amazing video. Stuck in my head.

[@MichaelTheophilus906]

I think you were correct, when you said you made a mistake.

[@barbjarvi6543]

♥️

[@johnglad5]

My 2 cents. Use 4-6 inch fencing. Instead of cuttig off the ends loop the ends around the next panel. Experiment with the lengths of the pieces. 2 or 3 pieces can be used. They fold flat. I currently use light duty t posts and hang pieces of fencing directly on them. I also use heavy netting supported on top of the t posts.

[@WhitepepperFarmshomestead]

I’m struggling to picture that but I’m definitely interested in it 😂! That sounds awesome!

[@gardengrower7633]

Nice idea implemented, though that's serious $$$ per cage at $30+ per panel now. Hard to justify for me.

[@kqdwills]

In my area ( high desert CA), they are selling these panels for $35 plus taxes/each. I like the practical of this style, but it's not the best method to cut cattle panels. With this kind of panel cutting, you'll ended up with several unusable panel pieces with pointed nails, so cutting panels like a YTer Mark's garden's is definitely better with less work, less extra stuffs to buy, and more practical, stronger design too.

[@benpekarek382]

Cattle panel

[@benpekarek382]

Also hog ring. Lol😂

[@WhitepepperFarmshomestead]

😂😂😂

[@sislertx]

Get the hog ring pliers if your making more than one...hell..even if your making one..

[@MichaelTheophilus906]

"cattle panels" You must be a millionaire.

[@brockjomant2047]

You need hog ring pliers

[@mikek847]

Great design but $$$

[@sislertx]

Three of the Comercial ones cost 150.00!! I know...ive bought four sets..but im pushing 80 and it's worth it to me.

[@mcraw4d]

Nothing new, This idea has been around for quite some time

[@mjremy2605]

Way too much talking, my ears are hurting. Get to the point fast. Why is this an 8 min video? Should be 3 mins flat.

[@essielanier205]

U talk 2 much

[@Perseverance4477]

Have you ever grown ind. Tom. Before? They can grow in definitely, that cage is nowhere near big enough for ind. For Det. Yes.