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trellis for sweet peas or other vine

17 years ago

Does anyone have any advice for making a trellis - or some kind of framework - on which to grow sweet peas or some other vine, trumpet vine, etc.? We want to have something at least six feet tall, maybe taller, to screen us from the neighbors, who have chopped down their tall cypresses (that we loved, but then, it's their yard), leaving us a little more exposed than we would like to be. We were considering a tree of some kind, but that would take some years, and we may not be here for more than another year or two. We've been looking at trellis-type things in catalogs, and they mostly seem too short. So we thought that maybe some of the GardenWebbers would know how we could knock together something on our own. Any advice on vines would be welcome too! Thanks.

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Comments (2)

hopflower
17 years ago
I grow sweet peas extensively and use grape vine stakes about 10 feet tall and put into the ground about a foot or two. Netting is placed between these; and the peas climb up the netting. Sweet peas are not in flower for long however; remember, you seem to want privacy and the flowers do not last all season. They are rather short-lived and this is something for you to consider if you want long term vines. The perennial version of sweet pea is too short and they do not really climb. Hops might be a better choice as they seem to get dense. I grow these too, but on the other end of the garden. At any rate, the grape stakes work very well and are sturdy, strong, rust proof, and not that expensive.

Think about your choice of vine.
organic_tosca
Original Author
17 years ago
Hopflower, that is a brilliant idea. It's something not too elaborate, too, and that I think we could do (neither of us being terribly good at things like that). Thank you for the advice on vines, too - I guess it was just the nostalgic pull of sweet peas. I will research vines and try for something better. I would never have thought of hops, though, in spite of being a British Mystery fan! I must check that out, it sounds good.
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Sweet Peas often get this way if the weather starts to get too hot for them. It is a common occurence and depending upon where you live starts more or less around the same time each year. They will keep producing as long as it is cool enough; otherwise it gets too hot and they start to die off. Always mulch them in early spring to keep them cool and to keep moisture in. But once the temps start heading toward the 90s, your peas are on their way out.
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Try a two-foot tall mini A-frame between double rows of peas. I use a couple of sections of cut trellis and lash them together. It's easy to take apart and store when the peas comes out -- or you can let cucumbers ramble over the frame later. Here is a link that might be useful: HarvestToTable.com
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My sister grows her sweet peas on her chain-link fence. However, her fence is 6 ft tall. I haven't grown them myself, but I like the looks of bamboo tee-pees. I guess you would need some cotton string or twine, if sweet peas need something thinner to wrap their tendrils around. We had a flag pole in my old yard, which would have been a great center to attach twine for climbing. I also read on one of the forums about someone who used an old umbrella frame from a patio table as the center of their climbing vines. I might take a trip to the dump to see what tall things you could find. It definitely depends on your taste and what your neighbors will tolerate. You can also get sections of portable cattle fencing. I'm not certain of the measurements, but they might be 4'x12'? Lots of options. Let us know what you decide to do. If you have space, you could try a few different methods and see what you like best. Martha
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ok, I have 16 seedlings, started indoors in late February, now planted in the garden. I did a very improvised trellis for them to climb up on. I just pounded three 7' posts into the ground about 5 feet apart, and then stapled the Hotonova trellis netting to them. My worry is that I don't have a crossbar at the top; is that going to be ok? (Ignore the white vinyl latticework behind it - I put that up a few years ago for morning glory which I'm not growing this year; I know the sweet pea tendrils won't be able to grasp onto that.) Thanks for any advice.
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