Clockwise from
top left: Rigid livestock panels do double duty as a fence and support
for tomatoes, plus they can be bent to create an arched entry; saplings
or bamboo poles are easy to use for pole bean tipis; pea tendrils love
to cling to twiggy brush; and so-called “tomato” cages work better to
support peppers and eggplants. ILLUSTRATION: ELAYNE SEARS
How Plants Climb
Plants that benefit from garden trellises use a variety of methods to cling to support, including curling tendrils, twining stems or, in the case of tomatoes, long, ropy branches that form roots in places that touch the ground.Curling tendrils produced by peas and cucumber-family crops will twist around whatever is available, so you have plenty of versatility when supporting these crops. Tendrils cling to horizontal and vertical parts of a trellis, so netting woven from biodegradable string attached to posts often works well. Twining stems spiral around their support, growing steadily upward until they turn back on themselves — a growth habit seen in hops, pole beans, Malabar spinach and yard long beans.
Twining stems have little use for horizontal lines, so they do best with trellises composed mostly of poles or an upright fence.
No comments:
Post a Comment