[Charl89]

i am going to make a temporary raspberry cage with bamboo canes an joinging them with bamboo ball joining things i have found on an internet site. does anyone know if they are good? they will also having netting to cover it too

[Gandan57]

No point in spending your hard earned cash buying joiners when upturned empty plastic bottles work just as well.

[Auntiemogs]

No point in spending your hard earned cash buying joiners when upturned empty plastic bottles work just as well.

I was planning to do the same with my brassica cage so please tell Grandan? 

[Gandan57]

500 ml Coke bottles or similar are ideal. Place upturned bottle on the upright cane and CAREFULLY with a stanley knife cut a small cross in the side just below the bottom. Push a horizontal cane into the cross cut. For a corner cut another cross at 90 degrees to the first and push another horizontal cane into that cross and so on.

I wish I could draw a diagram to illustrate it better. Perhaps someone else can?

[Auntiemogs]

500 ml Coke bottles or similar are ideal. Place upturned bottle on the upright cane and CAREFULLY with a stanley knife cut a small cross in the side just below the bottom. Push a horizontal cane into the cross cut. For a corner cut another cross at 90 degrees to the first and push another horizontal cane into that cross and so on.

I wish I could draw a diagram to illustrate it better. Perhaps someone else can?

Simples when you know how...  
Thanks Grandan, no more buildaballs for me. 

[Growster...]

We bought some joining balls and excellent canes on Scramazon last year Charl. The canes were the best we'd ever bought, and in fact were occasionally too thick to use easily, so I had to sharpen them to fit!

The balls are pretty versatile too, and have withstood most of the winter wind, but the frame got clobbered when the snow just built up on the net. They usually stay stuck in position!

The net is a bit skimpy, but overall, we spent about £50, and got some seriously economic cages, and we'll use them for several years.

If you want to PM me, I'll let you have the names of the companies I bought the stuff from!

[snowdrops]

I use canes with balls from a children's ball pool on the top.But I don't join any to them I just drape the netting over the top & secure it to the ground.

[Ice]

Have a read here.

http://chat.allotment-garden.org/index.php?topic=35130.0

[Kleftiwallah]

 Old tennis balls are ideal for this.  They are a begger to drill though.      Cheers,     Tony.

[Charl89]

great ideas everyone. might try making a custome made one with bottles or balls. better get looking around lol

[mattwragg94]

i was thinking the same as tony regarding the tennis balls - im sure i saw the doing that on the 'Big Dig'

[moose]

I use tennis balls and find it easy to cut a cross with a stanley knife.