Tomato cages are a convenient way to support your growing tomatoes

Most varieties of tomatoes need support when they are growing. Tomato cages are much more convenient than stakes for support growing tomatoes. If you are supporting your tomatoes with a stake, you need to constantly train the plant to grow up the stake. Using tomato cages avoids the need to train the plant at all. You just plant the growing tomatoes inside of the cage and it will keep the plant upright and contained.

You can make your own tomato cages by cutting them from a length of wire mesh, then wrapping them into a cylindrical shape. You can also buy ready-made tomato cages from most garden supply shops. These ready-made cages are obviously more convenient but they don't give you as much freedom as home-made cages. If you're growing tomatoes that don't easily fit the pre-made cages, making your own might be the only way to go.

Tomato cages can be reused for growing tomatoes from year to year.

You can use the same tomato cages from one year to the next when you're growing tomatoes. The only time I wouldn't recommend reusing them is if your plants are affected by tomato disease. Growing tomatoes in these same cages the following year could cause them to also be affected by disease.

Tomato cages are most helpful for varieties with larger fruit, since they are heavier and need more support. They will still help if you're growing tomatoes from smaller varieties, such as cherry tomatoes. The fruit on these plants is not as large or heavy, but if there are a lot of tomatoes on the plant it can still require support.

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