Last year we grew some very productive Tom Thumb type cherry tomatoes in ebuckets (5 gallon). The plants didn't require much staking. We have limited full sun areas in our yard and the beds I normally use for tomatoes had some wilt issues last year so we need to build some more beds. My husband has fallen in love with a cherry tomato mix he's getting in the store right now and would like to try to grow some specialty cherry tomatoes in the ebuckets (the new garden beds probably won't be ready in time). My big concern is staking the indeterminate plants-I'm thinking a 4-6 ft high wire cage around the entire bucket? Does anyone have any suggestions or tips? Any suggestions on tasty yellow or black cherry varieties?

I haven't grown any indeterminate cherry tomatoes but if you have chosen some that you want to grow, it should tell you the length of the vines on the package. Sorry but I don't have any recommendations.

Please let us know what you chose and how it does...

Will do

Deb, What about a simple tomato cage available everywhere for about $1. Plant your tom(s) then insert the tomato cage over same, and just push the cage down a little. I have done it this way for indeterminates, and I also have purchased bamboo stakes (4'-5') and tied each tom to the stake. Tip: It is difficult to find good "ties", wire/vinyl ones no-give. I take a pair of pantyhose, put the waste in a bench vice, stretch out one leg, and cut strips about 1/2 wide. They reduce down to about 1/8" when free. They will expand and not cut delicate plants. PS: I know for certain that I would be taking seeds from some of those toms in the package, and trying them, no question! Good Growing!

Last year I grew indeterminate cherry & plum tomatoes in a large pot...about 10 gallons. I think I had 3-4 types in there. Things went well...for a while. I used a large tomato cage to support them. By July they not only grew over the cage but spilled out almost growing back to ground. So, I inverted another tomato cage and zip-tied it upside down (top ring to top ring) to the first one. We threaded all the vines up though it and it was already near the top. Within a few weeks the mass of tomato vines spilled over the top. At this point the tower was about 7 feet high. I thought it would never get back to ground. I was wrong. It grew heavy to one side and tipped. So, I used long metal fence posts on three sides and tethered the tomato tree to them. Anyway, you get the point. When frosts finally hit, the weight made the cages misshapen. They produced so heavily that 2 weeks ago, all the semi ripe and green tomatoes I snatched up the day before frost were used in a soup. I probably had about 5-6 cups left. So, it was a bit of a problem, but it kept us in tomatoes for a long long time.

I only had a monster tomato plant once, in the PNW. But it sure was a lot of fun to watch that thing grow and grow. I kept it on our aggregate patio, as I need to increase heat here. I probably should not have set some chair near it, because we had a couple friends and a neighbor who would bring their own salt shaker and sit down and enjoy a juicy tomato till we got home. It was such a big plant, I needed help using the fruit.