Q. I like to decorate my backyard
with trellises and would like to grow vegetables vertically. Are there
some late season vegetables I can train up my trellises for fall and winter
harvest and when should I plant them?
A. Growing plants
vertically is a good space saver for smaller backyards and allows you to
concentrate production in a smaller area. Allowing vegetable plants with soft
fruits, such as tomatoes, to sprawl on the ground increases fruit losses
perhaps as much is 30% of total yield.
Some good vegetables to grow by trellising when temperatures cool off
toward September include pole beans with two of my favorites being Kentucky
Wonder and Blue Lake which have wonderful flavor. They are also available in
Bush types but I still think the flavor is better when these varieties are
grown on poles or trellises.
If you want edible pea pods then I would recommend Mammoth (Melting). I
also like yardlong beans for growing on trellises. They tend to like warmer
weather so planting a bit early should not be a problem. One of the most common
varieties is Asparagus yardlong or Chinese yardlong beans.
Another I would recommend is the Scarlet Runner Bean. It has beautiful
red flowers and the pods are edible or you can shell them when they mature.
with trellises and would like to grow vegetables vertically. Are there
some late season vegetables I can train up my trellises for fall and winter
harvest and when should I plant them?
A. Growing plants
vertically is a good space saver for smaller backyards and allows you to
concentrate production in a smaller area. Allowing vegetable plants with soft
fruits, such as tomatoes, to sprawl on the ground increases fruit losses
perhaps as much is 30% of total yield.
 |
| Cucumbers on a wire trellis |
Speaking first about tomatoes, a very interesting technique developed
in Florida for commercial tomato production is called the Florida Weave. You
can see how this is done at Wiki How http://www.wikihow.com/Tie-Tomatoes-Using-the-Florida-Weave
in Florida for commercial tomato production is called the Florida Weave. You
can see how this is done at Wiki How http://www.wikihow.com/Tie-Tomatoes-Using-the-Florida-Weave
Some good vegetables to grow by trellising when temperatures cool off
toward September include pole beans with two of my favorites being Kentucky
Wonder and Blue Lake which have wonderful flavor. They are also available in
Bush types but I still think the flavor is better when these varieties are
grown on poles or trellises.
Vegetable Trellis on Pinterest
Don’t forget to try pole peas such as Sugar Snap where you can eat the
pod and the peas (after you remove the string..remember that string?). Another
favorite of mine for taste is Lincoln. It can be trellised or grown as a bush
but it is a very high producer and great flavor.
 |
| Trellissing tomato and cucumber in the greenhouse |
If you want edible pea pods then I would recommend Mammoth (Melting). I
also like yardlong beans for growing on trellises. They tend to like warmer
weather so planting a bit early should not be a problem. One of the most common
varieties is Asparagus yardlong or Chinese yardlong beans.
Another I would recommend is the Scarlet Runner Bean. It has beautiful
red flowers and the pods are edible or you can shell them when they mature.
 |
| Trombocino squash trellised |
Next year when trellising, for fun try the loofa squash which is edible
when the fruit is young, about 8 to 10 inches long and used as a loofa sponge
when it is mature. It produces some long vines that can be trellised.
Another fun one is
the trumpet or trumbetta squash which produces a 6 foot squash that is long and
straight when trellised and coiled when grown on the ground.