Vertical Logistics

Greetings. My first post. I read Mel's book and am now carrying out some of his ideas. This vertical option intrigues me. Last year, I grew cukes below a trellis, and they didn't want to grab on. They sprawled anyway. Because my trellis is only 4'2" high, I placed it 1' off the ground. I think this was the problem. I figured when the plant got ~15" high, I could train it onto the trellis. It didn't seem to work out that way. I grew zucchini and imagined it trying to go up. It didn't seem feasible. Many vegetables are sprawling and could be trained to sprawl up, but don't "vine". Unlike true vining plants like beans, which grab things. Can anyone share their experiences growing things vertically which aren't true vining plants? Did you just "suggest" and encourage the plant to hang onto the fence, or did you physically attach it, and if so, how? Any other tips, hints, etc. are greatly appreciated!

Welcome: Here is a link to a fellow that demonstrates a technique for vertical growing zucchini that is often referred to. http://www.mysquarefootgarden.net/pruning-zucchini/ His method is good for a few other crops also.
Here is a link to another page in this forum that shows a nifty way of using sloping trellises that then let you easily spot cucumbers or other hanging fruits. https://squarefoot.forumotion.com/t5903-cucumber-trellis-idea . If you make an entry in the Google search box above and to the left side a list of related pages will appear, check mark the Search SFG box to mostly limit it to this forum.

I will try the stake and prune method.

I stake everything I grow & transfer to a trellis at 12-16" height.

Transfering is as simple as either having the stake close enough to the trellis, or orienting the stake so that it grows into the trellis. Once its on the trellis, you can even remove the stake if u want.

If the attachment point is too big (wide) for the tendrils (bans, cukes, etc) ..... the green stretch plastic or velcro plant tape works great (I prefer the velco because its reuseable).

Sourceress, Saw this was your first post and that you hadn't had a proper welcome. This is a great place to learn stuff. There are so many knowledgable people on here who are very helpful. Thank you for joining us.

In my experience, very few vining plants actually climb without some help. Pole beans and peas are two exceptions. Almost anything else that I have tried needs more than coaxing. It needs firm management. As I am watering my plants I will grab a wandering stem of a cuke or whatever and tuck it into a space in the trellis and get it started that way. Every few days I do it again. When they start to get a bigger and especially when starting to blossom I tie them on to give them more support when they are fruiting. I am an old hippie and use pieces of old panty hose for tying stuff on. Acara's plants are wonderful. He prunes his fairly hard and ties them more frequently than I do, and his results are amazing. He also has the dreaded HOA to contend with so is rather fussy about how he uses his old pantyhose. He uses really nice stuff to tie his plants up with and they DO LOOK GREAT. I am planning to start growing more stuff vertically. Save on space and they get better air circulation and better fruit develoment.

Best of luck and thank you for joining us.

Gwynn

Glad to have ya!

I'm just trying out vertical gardening for the first time this year. I definitely intend to attach my plants to the trellis rather than just trying to get them to hang on themselves.

Dangit .... keep forgetting to check the post count .....

Bad Acara, bad manners ....

Welcome ....even if it is a little late

acara wrote:Dangit .... keep forgetting to check the post count .....

Bad Acara, bad manners ....

Welcome ....even if it is a little late

Aww, don't worry about it! You have other things on your mind so you are entitled to be a bit forgetful. Sure do miss all your crazy posts but understand how life sometimes gets in the way of our fun times.

Gwynn

Sourceress, glad you're here! For plants I want to trellis which don't have tendrils to hold themselves to the trellis, I usually weave them in and out of the trellis material while they are growing up, being gentle when I do it. Most things near the new growth are pretty flexible and with a modicum of care can be shaped to go pretty much where I want them to. To get them started, I may tie them to the trellis until they are big enough to go through three or so holes in the trellis, but after that they'll stay on their own in my experience.

Mark