Vertical Gardening

When I read about growing a pumpkin vertically, on a trellis, in Mel Bartholomews’ All New Square Foot Garden Book, I fell in love with the idea. I had a plot at the community garden, and I thought a big pumpkin growing on a trellis would amuse the other gardeners. It didn’t work out as planned; only one pumpkin grew on the ground. But it was a fun project.

There are many benefits to growing squash and melons vertically; the wow factor is just a small perk. Growing pumpkins, squash, and melons vertically produce more food with less hassle. These plants sprawl over the ground, making them more susceptible to powdery mildew or garden pests.  Vertical gardening will reduce the risk of pests and save space in the garden. Vertical gardening is an excellent choice if you have limited space, 

Dill plants may help prevent powdery mildew because Dill repels the bugs that spread it. Source

My favorite vertical garden was the watermelon plant I grew on an arch. My husband made arches of hog panels for the garden, and I used one for melons. The watermelon grew over the arch; it was fun to watch the melons grow. I grew sugar baby watermelons and put a sling under them for extra support.

Spaghetti Squash was one of my first successes with vertical gardening; it was one of the easiest plants to grow. The hardest part was setting up the trellis. I planted that seed directly into the ground; I did not start it from seed indoors. I didn’t buy the seed; the seed came from an organic spaghetti squash. The Spaghetti Squash plant thrived and produced five squashes from one plant.

Green beans are the easiest plant to grow on a trellis; I don’t grow them any other way now. I used to grow them on a tall homemade trellis, but now I plant them around my garden fence and use the fence as my trellis. You must use the green beans that grow on a vine, not a bush. Growing green beans along the fence also acts as a sacrificial plant; it draws the Japanese Beetles away from my other plants. The Japanese Beetles eat the leaves of the green bean plants, but I still get a lot of green beans.

I grow peas on my homemade trellis; it is another low-maintenance crop. I soak seeds and plant eight seeds per square foot along the trellis. Saving seeds from a pea plant is easy. I let some pods dry up on the vine and harvest them when I take the plant down.

The homemade trellis is easy to make; I credit the idea to Mel Bartholomew. I learned how to make it in his Square Foot Gardening book. I use electric conduit pipes, two connectors, two pieces of rebar, and a trellis net. The rebar goes into the bottom of the conduit pipes and the ground. The rebar adds stability to the trellis. I use the connectors to connect one of the electrical conduit pipes at the top and put the trellis net on. It is easy to make and inexpensive; my trellises have lasted for years. I have not had to replace the trellis net in four years; it is durable.

If you have limited space in the garden and want to reduce the hassle of powdery mildew, try vertical gardening.