Martha Stewart's Must-Try Tip For Growing A Tomato Garden

Tomatoes might be the most common form of produce grown in the average home garden, perhaps due to their versatility and because the plants produce fruits even for first-time gardeners who don't know much about plant care. Growing an abundance of tomatoes, however, requires a little care and attention to ensure those tasty, natural treats grow to their healthiest potential. When Martha Stewart blogs about her garden, she notes the importance of using strong structures to support vining plants so vines can climb. "I stake my tomatoes in stages, using stronger, taller supports as the plants develop," she states in a post about her vegetable garden. 

Stewart uses bamboo tomato stakes because bamboo is attractive, easy to find, and reusable. It's also sustainable as a renewable resource since some species grow up to 3 feet in a single day without chemicals treatments. Bamboo's flexibility and light weight are traits that make it useful in the garden. Stewart uses a tipi-style structure for growing tomatoes as an alternative to tomato cages. As for the supplies to recreate Stewart's design structure, it's as simple as finding some long bamboo canes and a roll of jute twine. 

When your tomato plants are still less than 2 feet high, a single stake is enough to support them, but once they grow taller, Martha Stewart's tipi method offers far more support, plus room for additional growth. Bamboo canes about 8 feet tall offer plenty of room to grow. A bamboo tipi-style frame goes around each tomato plant and can be used whether you prefer an in-ground or raised-bed garden. Dig three holes, each about the width of a bamboo cane and 8 to 10 inches deep, a few inches beyond each tomato plant to form a triangle around the plant. Push one bamboo pole into each hole, backfilling the dirt as needed.

Press the tips of the bamboo posts towards the center so the posts overlap a foot or so from the top, then tie them with jute twine to keep them in this tipi structure. Some parts of the tomato plant may be long enough to need the extra support already; if so, loosely tie those areas to one of the bamboo poles using loops of jute. Leaving the twine loose allows the plant to grow. In Stewart's garden, jute is wrapped on the diagonal around the tipi frame, like the red band on a candy cane. This wrapping style gives the tomato vines a place to cling to for added strength. 

Other plants such as pole beans benefit from a tipi-style trellis too. As an added bonus, planting green beans near the tomatoes allows them to serve as a companion plant that benefits the garden soil. The beans convert nitrogen in a form that benefits the tomatoes, effectively boosting their chances for optimal health.