I have a huge vegetable garden I work on at the Pine Street Community Garden. Our Senior Garden Club meets weekly to plant and tend to our raised bed. We do have a restriction regarding the length of plant material; none of the vegetables can hang over the raised beds to interfere with the other 30 gardeners at the site.
In our 20-by-4-foot raised bed, we have found that anything in the winter squash family will flourish, but that it will also grow from 5 to 10 feet in length. Crops such as butternut squash, acorn squash and gourds needed a solution to survive.
So, one of my Senior Garden students, who has been gardening for 30 years, took the matter in her hands and created a lattice on which the crops could climb.
I think I am going to name her design the “Tic Tac Toe Lattice,” because she used six bamboo stakes to create an instant tiny fence.
TIC TAC TOE LATTICE
Use six 3-foot bamboo stakes, and place them on the ground in a parallel fashion. The first three should be a finger’s width apart. The last three will cross over the first three. Tie with green floral tape or brown string, and you have an instant lattice!
PURPOSE OF THE TRELLIS
The purpose of the trellis is to maximize garden space. If you have squash or mini-pumpkins that need 5 to 20 feet to grow, the trellis can maximize the height and support they need to produce the vegetable’s growth.
As the plant grows, the foliage appears first, but as the flowers appear close to the ground, they must be elevated to produce further growth. When left on the ground, they can be attacked by powdery mildew, or worse yet, eaten by the critters that may be in your yard.
Alongside your squash trellis, another could be created to coax cucumbers and Swiss chard up the mini-fence.
THE FLOWER TRELLIS
There is nothing that will create a splash of color at your front door more effectively than a climbing vine such as bright blue Grandpa Ott’s morning glory, a golden thunbergia or brilliant red mandevilla. I mention Grandpa Ott’s since it is available from Seed Savers Exchange, but any morning glory will do.
Climbers appeal for several reasons; they grow rapidly to create a sense of maturity in a new garden, and their scrambling habit brings a sense of elegance to your front door.
All of these vines need something they can curl their tendrils around. That can be accomplished by providing an unobtrusive wire, such a fishing line, or with an ornamental feature such as a trellis. When the trellis is attached to a bare wall or entryway column, it will fill up the space as the climbers begin to cover the structure.
THE SIMPLEST ENTRYWAY PLANTER
When searching for a planter for my Grandpa Ott’s morning glory display, I found an old hanging basket in my backyard and removed the wires and hanger.
The plants had since died in the container, but the base was the perfect size for a brilliant red tomato cage that would act as a trellis. I removed the wires from the basket, and voila! the perfect base for my trellis display.
I planted a dozen morning glory seeds in a circle at the edge of the pot and filled the center with nasturtium seeds.
In two weeks, the morning glory had begun its climb to fame, and the nasturtium were cascading over the edge.
CREATE YOUR TRELLIS GARDEN
Send us photos of your garden creations using unusual materials, and we might just feature them in an upcoming article. Happy gardening!
Jano Nightingale is a master gardener and horticulturist. Contact her at [email protected] for upcoming classes.
