Trellising sideways?

Megan 5/15/2010, 8:30 am

Has anyone ever successfully trellised a tomato plant sideways rather than up? I know it goes against the natural inclination of the plant, I was just wondering....

Retired Member 1 5/15/2010, 8:38 am

I'm having a challenge picturing this. But a tomato's inclination is to grow up, so you'd have to be really diligent at tying it to the trellis in the direction you want it to go. Even when I have let my tomatoes sprawl over mulch, they have sent up branches reaching for the sky until they got too heavy.

I'd be interested in your progress should you try this. And pics!

Megan 5/15/2010, 8:43 am

It is probably a project doomed to failure... I have a narrow strip of yard between our walk and a short fence (maybe 24"-30" high), just wondering if I can use it. Right now my trellises and mulch bags/etc are sitting there. I have room in my SFG for only two tomato plants as it is (unless I cram on in on top of a nasturtium, which seems a bad idea) and now I have a third variety I was given as a gift...

pomaikai 5/5/2011, 8:45 pm

Megan wrote:Has anyone ever successfully trellised a tomato plant sideways rather than up? I know it goes against the natural inclination of the plant, I was just wondering....

Aloha, Megan, this is a waaaaay late reply to sideways trellising of tomatoes. I have a 10 to 12 foot yellow pear tomato plant that runs across my rose bed, oblivious to earlier efforts to make it go over a trellis I set up to keep it from running amok in thr rose bed. It has been regularly setting fruit, so I'm just going to postpone pruning the roses until later. Go for it, you can't really do harm.

Miss M 5/6/2011, 12:29 am

My tomatoes have reached the top of my trellis, and I will now be attempting to train them down the trellis. I know I have to be vigilant, but if I let them continue up, they will go through the chicken wire on top of the garden, and I will lose all tomatoes above that point to the birds. Evil or Very Mad

pomaikai 5/6/2011, 1:22 pm

Aloha, supersebtastic.
you might want to try www.squarefootgardening.org - they do carry quality products!
And, a warm Trellising sideways? 396615

to you as you find out how easy it is to garden the Square Foot way.

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