Vining cucumbers will be in a different bed from where I originally planned on my excel map because I don't have the end beds ready yet and the cucumbers I started from seed indoors are now big and beautiful and need a garden home. That's why I built a new trellis for them in bed 4 above the squash.
The trellis is just a simple frame made from recycled wood, with trellis netting attached to it. Here is a picture of my trellis netting before I put it up.
This year I used the Burpee trellis netting but in year's past I got it from Park Seed.
It's available other places too called
Vegetable Trellis Netting.
I saw it at Gurney's when I was checking out their Take $20 Off any $40 Order sale.
I love this trellis netting because it's cheap and it really works! It has six or seven inch openings that you can reach through for harvesting. It's made of soft nylon, is washable and doesn't tangle when stored.
I only buy new every few years because it keeps for a long time, even when I've left it out all year long!
I use this trellis netting to support peas, cucumbers, small pumpkins or melons, luffa and some gourds, and sometimes even to support tomatoes.
I built my cucumber trellis by driving wood 2x4s into the ground on either side of the bed. I then have a top support ready that spans to reach each end post. This trellis is made from 2x4's only because that is what I have on hand from previous projects. If I were buying new, I would use 1x1s instead.
I attach the trellis netting by "weaving" it onto the wood supports.
See how the netting goes from one side of the board to the other? It is best if you can weave it onto the top board and both side supports because then it is securely attached without any tying, nailing or stapling.
I attach the top trellis board to the support boards by lining the boards up and drilling a hole down through the top board into the upright boards. Then you can simply drop a lag bolt down in the hole. The trellis stays in place well, but comes apart easily when its time to take it down. For this one I re-used lag screws in the drilled holes, so I did have to use a wrench to attach it.
My side posts are five feet tall because my trellis netting was five by fifteen feet. I secured the bottom of the netting to the ground with old tent stakes.
Then, all that was left to do was to add my cucumber seedlings.
I planted one cuke every foot or so, alternating which side of the net to plant them.
Since I already had the trellis boards ready from previous years, making this trellis and planting the cucumbers only took about an hour. Now before long, my cucumber plants will grow all the way to the top of the trellis and I will be harvesting cucumbers without even bending down!
I can hardly wait!
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