Trellis for running vegetables question

[JerryHaskins]

Not tomato related, so this may be in the wrong section, but has anybody else used any of that nylon net for a trellis for running vegetables such as English peas?

This stuff but not this brand:



I have used it in the past and am having another go at it---but it's a mess.

It's virtually impossible to save and reuse the next year.

If you have used it, how did you support it and how did it work out?

If you have a better alternative, I'd like to hear it.

My raised beds are 4 feet wide x 24 feet long.

To support the trellis, I am using those long plastic coated rods they sell in gardening stores spaced several feet apart down the length of the bed.

[Cole_Robbie]

I have used it. But you're right in that it is very hard to clear the old, dead material out of it so it can be re-used the next year.

[mikemansker]

I use this and stretch it over a PVC frame. It's more heavy duty than some and the frame keeps it rigid. Photo is a little shaded, but you can get the idea.

https://amazon.com/gp/product/B00MC9NX8S/ref=oh_aui_search_detailpage?ie=UTF8&psc=1

[sirtanon]

I've actually used this stuff as plant support on numerous occasions, with great success:

[jmsieglaff]

This may or may not be of interest. If you're looking for something you'll only need to make once, I recommend cattle panels with electrical conduit set onto rebar pounded into the ground. My sugar snap peas grow nicely on them and it is a breeze to remove plants. I line the northern edges of my raised beds with them for vertical things like peas, cucumbers, squash. (See the panels up close and notice peas in the background.)

[Rajun Gardener]

I'm using some Hortonova Plant Trellis and t-post this year, they sell different heights and lengths just google to find a price you like.

https://www.zenhydro.com/grower-s-ed...CABEgIWSPD_BwE

I have it and use it, but you're right: it takes more effort to clean. Mine is tied to EMT and my peas, beans, and cukes all use it but prefer cattle panel (or wood for the legumes); squash and melons on the cattle panel; tomatoes on everything!

I have just left mine up all year 3 years now, but when hanging empty I do have to re-zip-tie the corners come springtime, from where the wind tangles them.

If you can back brace or cross brace, it will help you a lot.

[Cole_Robbie]

Cattle panels are great. A cheaper option is 8x16' concrete reinforcing wire panels. I got mine delivered for about $15 each, I think. They are not galvanized, so you have to look at rusty wire, but they will last a long time if they don't touch the ground.

[kath]

I used that type of netting before changing to cattle panels. I used tall metal t-posts for verticals and zip tied plastic covered metal "bamboo" poles horizontally to the t-posts and along the ground to hold the netting down a bit. Too hard to clean and keep untangled season to season but otherwise it worked fine.

[JerryHaskins]

Super thanks everybody for the feedback!

I probably should have mentioned that I cannot very well leave it up all year because I will be planting other vegetables in my beds as soon as the English peas are done.

I like this idea, sirtanon. I may give that a shot. Looks like vendors mostly call it "TENAX Guardian Safety Fence".

Originally Posted by sirtanon

I've actually used this stuff as plant support on numerous occasions, with great success:

[saltmarsh]

Hi Jerry, This will be my 6th year using vegetable netting. This link pretty well explains it.

http://tomatoville.com/showpost.php?...1&postcount=26

I'm in Water Valley, MS.

The old growth can be easily removed. When the crop is finished, use a hoe and cut the plants off at the ground, let the vines die and dry and they will crumble off easy-peasy.

The trellis works well for peas, pole beans, climbing limas, cucumbers, tomatoes, peppers, and eggplant.

The trellis lasts for 3 - 4 years and the pvc conduit is on its seventh year and still going strong. Claud

[BigVanVader]

I'm using this as my melon trellis. Going to cover with net as well to keep melons from hanging through holes.

[SueCT]

I have used it. I used the metal fence posts used for chain link fences, hammered them into the ground at each corner of the garden, stretched the trellis tight between posts and put it into the little tabs that usually secure the links of a fence. It is very sturdy and I have successfully left it up in Connecticut over the winter. You can see some of them with some remnants of string on it here, and more in the background. I do find it a bit of a pain to clean up at the end of the year from dead plant materials, but with a good pair of pruners it isn't horrible.

[IMG]IMG_1747 by Susan Albetski, on Flickr[/IMG]

[JerryHaskins]

Thanks saltmarsh, BigVanVader, and SueCT.

Saltmarsh, that's a mighty big planting, but what I did this week is pretty similar on a much smaller scale. You must be growing for commercial sales. Is that grass between the rows in this photo?

http://tomatoville.com/attachment.ph...2&d=1459661039

[saltmarsh]

Originally Posted by JerryHaskins

Thanks saltmarsh, BigVanVader, and SueCT.

Saltmarsh, that's a mighty big planting, but what I did this week is pretty similar on a much smaller scale. You must be growing for commercial sales. Is that grass between the rows in this photo?

http://tomatoville.com/attachment.ph...2&d=1459661039

Jerry, I grew up on a truck farm in the 50's and 60's. Started peddlin' vegetables when I was 8 years old. I grow these for my own use and give the rest away.

About the grass in the middle.

It's the only fertilizer I use.

It acts as a living mulch; keeps the ground cool and retains moisture.

When it rains, it slows the water down allowing more to soak in.

When it floods (my garden floods 4or 5 times a year), it allows the excess water to drain quickly without erosion or damage to the vegetables.

It isn't just grass; it is mixed with every weed that surrounds the garden (except Johnson Grass and Burdock root, which were dug up and removed before the garden was first planted) The weeds act as companion plants for the vegetables. I spray my vegetables with a garlic/pepper tea to repell and confuse insects. I don't spray the grass and weeds; so the bugs prefer the grass and weeds.

We have heavy dews most mornings, so the grass raises the humidity around the vegetables for a large part of the day.

So I guess it is grass in the middles. Ha. Claud