Tomato Stakes

If you have been by the garden lately, perhaps you noticed that our tomatoes were a little... shorter than most. Not having 10 6' lengths of ribar threaded with rope or sufficiently large tomato cages to contain them, they had fallen over and began acting more like the vines that they are. This was not good for the tomatoes or our garden -- when tomato leaves come in contact with the soil, they become incredibly susceptible to soil-borne diseases, and one risks losing the whole plant. Furthermore, being fairly heavy and sprawly, then were suffocating and pushing around other nearby plants. But there they lay for two or three weeks, waiting for the support that simply was not manifesting. As the days went on and the tomatoes grew fruit, I became very nervous. I was worried that our trial would be a total failure, and I'd have to explain to the other growers that our results weren't exactly reliable since we didn't do the best job we could have with the plants. And then! MaryLou, my mom, came to visit me. While we both were weeding Saturday morning I mentioned the staking problem to her, and she quietly slipped away and found a big stick. Next thing I knew, the tomotoes were all supported -- gently tied to sticks buried beside them, but not interfering with their roots. Not a single plant is sagging now, and here four days after they were tied up, they are thriving. Thanks be to moms!