Bright sun, blossoming potager garden, and you start searching around for some kinds of climbers just to create that fairy-tale-like look. What can make a potager truly magical is that it’s about production just as much as it is about beauty. Climbing plants add a vertical charm and whimsy to it.
But the real stars of this show are the climbers themselves-whether it be some beautifully curving arch or a strictly functional trellis. Put on your gardening gloves, strap yourself in, and get ready to dive into our botanical journey.
Clematis are those sorts of flowers that just scream elegance-she’s like the Audrey Hepburn of flowers. This plant is for making statements with-from blush pink to deep plum, the color spectrums just go on and on. But let me just get a word in edgewise with this plant: clematis can be just a little bit finicky. A little bit of sun, a dash of shade, and some strategically placed mulching, and you’ll have some real showstoppers.
Next come sweet peas: nostalgia in fragrance-who can resist? Small flowers, reminders of the charm of spring, come blessed with a scent so intoxicating. Plant them early to weave in and out of your trellis throughout the season. And who could forget Mom’s garden? There they’d be, an oldie but a goodie.
Now, for something with punch which one can eat, behold the snap peas. These are the extroverts of the plant kingdom-growing to please and to make one happy. Crunchy bites off them turn the humble potager into a gourmet garden. It is one of life’s greatest pleasures just reaching out and munching on a fresh pea pod right off the vine as if it were nature’s very own snack bar.
While some dream of infusing an air of romanticism into their affair with flowers, roses are it-climbing roses, at least, slide over the arches and trellises as though possessed. Teething yet fragile, they ask for just a modicum of care and return the favor with finely perfumed blossoms. Roses remind one of all the loves one came across in novels and, with their thorn exterior, carrying a soft soul inside.
Let’s not forget about the nasturtiums-those handsome globe-trotter eatables. With flowers carrying pepperiness as the eye-catcher, mouth-tastic. The best in salads that need that little punch, or to make the neighbors jealous due to its vibrancy. It is low maintenance and very friendly to each absent-minded gardener out there.
Ah, so vivacious, wisteria! The plant is not shy. Anything it rubs itself on once it gets in its groove could become dreamland. Fair warning, though-it’s that one boisterous relative that eclipses the party. Give it room and regularly steer it. A little discipline, and wisteria is bringing an opera of purple and blue into your potager.
Beans, beans, and beans! Not a nursery rhyme, but beans are most definitely the pride of your belly and your eye. How fast it has grown-mostly in one night. They are practical, yet give a tapestry of green to your structure. Of course, there is then the added bonus of actually pulling off the danglers.
Making Mini Salesmen: Adding Panache to Your Potager A soft breeze would lick the air, threading in and out of the stakes of a potager garden-fresh basil and the scent of tomatoes among each other in the air. It’s not just a garden; it’s a tapestry come alive. And no such tapestry is complete without trellises. The magic marriage between functionality and flair weaves this tapestry.
There is much intrinsic reward in building your own trellis. Think of it like do-it-yourself therapy, some kind of winding of one’s ills into the wood. Well, let me assure you, I have made something out of wood and wire into this charming thing-a creation as soothing as sipping tea on a rain-filled afternoon. And you know what? You really don’t have to be an engineering genius to pull this off. A little bit of adventure and a call to the local hardware store would do just fine.
Kind of a blast from the past, thinking of how I made my first trellis from bed frames; surprising, huh? A bit less conventional, imagining your plants hugging what was once carrying dreams aloft, but man, it worked. Those rusty frames caressed my cherry tomatoes as tenderly as any lullaby.
When prospecting through recycled materials, do not be afraid of ladders, twigs, or other such things that are sturdy and artistic. A ladder trellis, for example, is useful but a treat to behold as the greenery rises upwards, step by verdant step. If you want to stick to natural supports, use bamboo, which is supple and easier on your purse strings than other garden trellises. Just a handful of whittled bamboo stakes tied together with some twine will suffice to provide a nice teepee shape that climbing plants can just thrive upon.
For something a bit more sophisticated, hit your local home they-got-it-all store for some metal rods that just won’t be fazed by a good rainstorm or two. Metal gives a really mod, sleek feel to your garden pageant. Just remember, if you leave your plants wrapped up against hot metal all summer long, scorch may result. And one little gardening tip? Shade cloth does a really great thing on a metal trellis to keep things cool as a cucumber. Now, picture this-scene after scene of backyard parties, with a trellis made from reclaimed window panes, which allow your wild vines to peek out through panes of glass as if peering into a living gallery. Mix colors or go rustically toned-anything your fancy desires. Without getting too flowery here, it is almost as if a stained glass masterpiece was fluttering in the breeze of your garden. Ah, let’s not pass the garden gate without uttering a word about weaving wood into hearts. This is one kind of tilling around a certain lazy afternoon when finally, boredom gets knitted into creativity. You can create whimsical trellises in heart shapes out of bending pliable branches. Other than being a pretty perch for roses or morning glories, these love-stricken shapes take your garden into dreamland romance. Of course, choosing just that spot is half the battle. Just plunking your trellis anywhere simply won’t do. Each different type of plant has its special place of sunshine. When the trellis nestles, it’s some sort of guarantee the plants will bloom with openness.
