DIY A Strong Garden Trellis On A Budget With Items You May Already Own

Growing your own food crops is an exciting journey for which you must be well-prepared. To get the best out of your seed, time, and harvest, you must equip your plants with the right framework to thrive. If you are thinking of planting fruits and vegetables such as cucumbers, garden peas, and other creeping plants and vines, then you will have to offer some sort of support for them to grow on. While there are plenty of cool, new techniques for growing plants vertically, you can take it back to the old school ways by erecting a durable and affordable trellis in your garden as shown by TikTok garden enthusiast Marv, one half of the @plantedinthegarden duo, using only strong twine, a wooden or metal post, and eye hooks — items you may already have in your tool shed.

A garden trellis is a tried and tested way to ensure your plants get the space they need to flourish without putting a heavy dent in your gardening budget. The great thing about using a trellis is that it maximizes your outdoor space. It will save you a lot of ground area that you can use to plant other things. You also increase the chances of a bigger and healthier yield because the crops aren't growing on the ground and are less likely to suffer from soil diseases and pest attacks. 

To build your trellis, you'll first want to build a raised garden bed for the post to stand over, as TikTok creator Marv from @plantedinthegarden did. This isn't a hard requirement, but it does look better than just planting the crops straight from the ground. It also has many benefits, such as improved soil aeration and drainage for the plant roots. Once your posts are up and ready, drill in the metal eye hooks that will hold the twine in place if they're made of wood. You don't need to do this if your posts are metal. Make sure you place hooks along the length of the post, both on the sides and up at the top.

When the eye hooks are in place, slide the twine through them horizontally, using one length of twine for every pair of hooks. Attach the twine on the top hooks for the vertical lines as well, and run them over and under the rows to create boxes. The weaving should remain tight and uniform for each column. Tie the twine ropes when you reach the bottom and snip off the excess. Now, your plants will have enough support from the trellis to climb as high as the post goes.

Using a trellis to grow climbing plants and vines is genius, but it is only effective if the plants are lighter than the structure. You can swap the twine for a stronger one like hemp rope if you want to grow heavier crops such as luffas. Otherwise, the weight of the heavy fruit would cause the rope to snap, and your precious harvest would come crashing down. You should also note the maximum potential height of the plants you're considering growing. Cucumbers can grow up to 5 feet before even producing any fruit, for example, so your trellis has to be able to accommodate it.

You can build a smaller trellis if you have plants that wouldn't require such a large trellis. If you like the idea of having climbing plants crawling up your wall inside your home, you can use a miniature trellis for your indoor garden on a smaller scale. This is perfect for ornamental plants like roses or hydrangeas. To recreate this vintage vibe, just drill nails in alternating forms against the wall of your home and weave the twine or string around them — no need for heavy posts. Grow the flowers against them and train them upwards on the wall so that they cover it according to the pattern of the rope.