Making Tomato Cages from Concrete Mesh

Thawley · April 3, 2009

Home Depot sells 5x150' rolls of 6" concrete mesh for $120. Using 13 squares (6.5') per cage, one roll of mesh will make 23 cages. The full roll is heavy – 150lbs – so use a dolly or a friend to help you move it.

The ends are bent inward to keep the roll closed.

A-clamps or a helper will keep the roll from springing open when the ends are straightened out.

Get some good pliers to unbend and open the roll. The bigger and better the pliers, the less pain and soreness will be required.

Wood, bricks or container plants can be used to manage the roll and keep it from getting away from you. (It wants to unwind more than you may want it to...)

Count out the number of 6" squares for the size cage you want – I used 13 squares – and cut each horizontal wire tightly against the 5' vertical wire. That'll make all the ends the same length and give you a clean vertical wire at the beginning of the next 6.5' length.

You can use the pliers to bend the ends – but I had a nut driver with a hole drilled about an inch or so up into the shaft. The fixed depth of the hollow gave me consistent length bends without having to measure.

Nut driver handle gave good leverage and straight, tidy bends.

Bent ends form hooks that grab the vertical wire at the other end once rolled.

Overlapping the ends by one 6" square keeps the cage round and gives you something to hold onto when hooking all the ends in place.

The cage should hold itself together without additional fasteners or welding. I used wire-ties to prevent any surprise movement or dismemberment that might occur once the cage is weighted down with tomatoes.

April 3, 2009	#1
Thawley Tomatovillian™ Join Date: May 2007 Location: SoCal - Zone 10 Posts: 106	Making Tomato Cages from Concrete Mesh Home Depot sells 5x150' rolls of 6" concrete mesh for $120. Using 13 squares (6.5') per cage, one roll of mesh will make 23 cages. The full roll is heavy – 150lbs – so use a dolly or a friend to help you move it. The ends are bent inward to keep the roll closed. A-clamps or a helper will keep the roll from springing open when the ends are straightened out. Get some good pliers to unbend and open the roll. The bigger and better the pliers, the less pain and soreness will be required. Wood, bricks or container plants can be used to manage the roll and keep it from getting away from you. (It wants to unwind more than you may want it to...) Count out the number of 6" squares for the size cage you want – I used 13 squares – and cut each horizontal wire tightly against the 5' vertical wire. That'll make all the ends the same length and give you a clean vertical wire at the beginning of the next 6.5' length. You can use the pliers to bend the ends – but I had a nut driver with a hole drilled about an inch or so up into the shaft. The fixed depth of the hollow gave me consistent length bends without having to measure. Nut driver handle gave good leverage and straight, tidy bends. Bent ends form hooks that grab the vertical wire at the other end once rolled. Overlapping the ends by one 6" square keeps the cage round and gives you something to hold onto when hooking all the ends in place. The cage should hold itself together without additional fasteners or welding. I used wire-ties to prevent any surprise movement or dismemberment that might occur once the cage is weighted down with tomatoes.