Rockin' Tomato Cages

Tom and I put our heads together and came up with this design for tomato cages.  The first year, I used store bought tomato cages and they were so flimsy, the tomato vines just bent them over.  At the end of the season, it was a nightmare trying to untangle the dead vines from the wires.  The second year (last summer) I didn't have any cages at all.  That was a mistake because the tomato vines became one solid mass that I had to tiptoe through.  I couldn't reach the tomatoes and and lot of them rotted on the ground.  I was determined to come up with something sturdy for this season.  Of course, there may be some unforeseen problems with this design, but at the moment, I've very excited about them and can't wait to get my tomatoes in the ground.

All we did was take pieces of hogwire (that were laying around our property so these cages are FREE) and bend them into a U/V shape.

Then we put them along the rows over the place where the tomatoes will be planted.  The holes in the wire are large enough for me to put my hand in and , hopefully, pick the tomato and pull it out through the hole.  The hog wire is very thick and strong, so it should be able to hold the vines up easily.

Also...

The asparagus that I planted last year is coming up.  I was told not to harvest any the first year, but I should be able to harvest some this year.  Can't wait!

These will fill out and be all ferny later in the season.

See, here's a perfect asparagus...just like in the grocery store.  I'm constantly amazed at what will actually grow when I plant it.  Not everything grows, but it's exciting when it does!