Garden Canopy for Tomatoes

by LoganMackey

18K639

Intro: Garden Canopy for Tomatoes


STEP 1: WHAT YOU WILL NEED

MATERIALS
80 feet of PVC pipe 1 or half inch, (i have alot of thsi PVC pipe laying around you can use anything really)
a Roll of Orange  Construction Fencing mesh, (You can find this stuff everywhere)
Zips Ties


TOOLS
Heat Gun
Clamps

STEP 2: Step One: Making the Corner Stakes

ok take two 2 foot long pieces of PVC pipe. Cut One of the ends off one the tubes, cut it at a angle so you cut a point into it.
 Next Take the second Piece of 2 foot pipe and use your heat cut to soften the plastic right in the middle until it bends, Now Bend that into a 90% angle and hold it there until it hardens (or use two clamps to clap it into place on a chair.
   Now take the pointed piece of PVC and heat up a spot about 8 inches down from the none pointed end.
 Take your now hardened 90% PVC pipe and hold it where you have just softened the other piece of PVC, now fold it around and down over the 90% part and clamp it into place to let harden.
Now make 7 More.

STEP 3: Step Two: Make Eight, 8" Poles


None of the scrap PVC i had was 8 feet long so i melted some together.  Take your heat gun heat up the one end of the PVC pipe then force the other pipes end into the others heated to soft end.
  and Force them into each other like you would put two drinking straws together.
    This is ow you make all the sides.

STEP 4: Step Three: Connect the Corers With the Sides

 Ok Now you got your 8 Corners and your 8 sides.  The Same way you connect the sides, You will now connect the corners with the sides.
  Heat up one end and force the other into it, This is not easy but with some practice it will work.
 Once you have all the parts put together you should have Two squares with four legs each.

STEP 5: Step Four: Adding the Mesh


 Now this is the easiest part get your Orange construction mesh and use your zip ties to secure it to the sides.
  They are 4 feet wide so i had to use two pieces and sip tie them together in the middle.
 There you go now place it over your tomatoes pound int the stakes until the canopy is about 6 inches high.
  Now Your Tomatoes will grow through the holes and place there fruit on the top of the mesh, and not on the ground where it can rot this also keeps your tomatoes plants in place and straight up.

9 Comments

jany 12 years ago

OMG. I wish I thought of this at the beginning of tomatoe season. I can see exactly how this works. My tomato plants are all hanging heavy where the cages did not contain. Thank you.

LoganMackey 12 years ago

thanks im sorry i didnt post it sooner have alot of projects but it works great and you can always do it next year

fegundez1 12 years ago

this could be used for a lot of veggies like squash, melons etc. living in Fla there are more bugs than you can count! this will keep the produce safer without poison! when it gets hot you can build a higher one with screen to shade the plants protecting from sun burn.

www.microbike.ie 12 years ago

what is it used for is the question, does it hold the tomatoes or just cover the ground with plastic mesh? or is it suspended above the ground, is it to shade the plans? here we need as much sun as we can get so why to shade the tomatoes?
Thanks!

LoganMackey 12 years ago

This has two purposes
ONE:
To hold tomato plants up so you don't have to individually stake each plant

TWO:
Keeps Fruit from setting on the ground witch makes them rot

and what the guy said below all those things
thanks fegundez1

LoganMackey 12 years ago

Its a 8 foot square, you just reach around from all sides, i have no trouble reaching them. You can check out my other instructable about my garden and how i planted the plants.

www.microbike.ie 12 years ago

Ok get it now, I know your other instructables and I love them I follow you for some time I just did not get this one :-)