Tomato caging

This is my first time gardening in TX, and I've done a lot of reading, and asking around to my fellow gardeners. One thing I learned that I really love, because I love improvising, is to use your tomato cage upside down! Who knew! It seems so strange at first, then if you think about it, maybe that's how they were intended to be used in the first place? Maybe a little lost in translation?

So, I went to Walmart and bought the cheapest cages possible. This being our first year, everything is a bit more pricey than we would like, so I'm going cheap. Next year, if this experiment just isn't enough, I'll improve. But for now, this will suffice.

Here is my cage. Nice and cheap, around $1 at Walmart. See how the base is wider when it's upside down! The base should be wider, because you need strong support at the base as your plants grow bigger and heavier, or they will topple. You can be certain these cheap cages will topple if used the "right" way!

Now, for those pesky eye gougers up top, the sticks that are supposed to go in the ground. Cut them off, or bend them off as I did. 3 times in opposite directions and they snapped right off.

Now, fold the broken stems in half like staples.

You got it! Now you're ready to use the broken stems as staples, and secure the base of your tomato cage into the ground. Secure on all 3 sides of the base.

Here's my baby's, all covered up thanks to a cool snap.

Next on my agenda will be to sew together some garden cloths for a nice cover to my garden. Call it a miniature greenhouse.