vertical growing

[sheps4her]

Has anyone else tried doing this with melons? I would like to try this with my melons. Pictures would be great if you have them.
Thanks!

 

[LunaGirl]

I have done this with cucumbers and cantaloupes.

 

[OaklandCityFarmer]

We do it with cucumbers and melons. Sometimes if the melons get too big we make a little sling out of nylons, old sheets, or something similar and wrap it around the melon and tie it to the fence/trellis. It seems to work fine and keeps them from falling down when they get too heavy.

 

[pjkobulnicky]

Works great ... a few cautions.

Be careful how you support the vines. They are not natural climbers so as you affix them to the trellis, do so with care. I use garden velcro tape ... self sticking. Just make loose loops around the vine and associated trellis. You don't want to cut the plant or its circulation.

Watch where you plant them. You don't want the trellis to shade other parts of the garden.

The absolute best thing to do, all be it expensive the first time, is to purchase 10' of the heavy wire mesh (about 4' wide) they sell for reinforcing concrete (like driveways) and make a hoop out of it ... about 2-3 feet high in the center. Then let the melons grow up and over the top. It keeps the melons and the vines clean (and disease free) but the vines will quickly hold themselves up as they crest the top. Lets cucumbers grow straight too.

Paul

 

[sheps4her]

Thanks for the great advice. I was wondering what to do when the melons get heavy. I will be trying this with cantalope, watermelon, casaba melon, ans cucumbers. I am excited to see how it turns out! That hoop idea sounds good too... I am guessing the idea would be that once the vines are growing through the wire, the melons when they develop would potentially rest on top of the wire? Do I have the picture correct in my mind??

 

[OaklandCityFarmer]

One thing I didn't add is that we actually grow our cucumbers between rows of corn. This helps save space, provides support for the cucumbers, provides shade for the cucumbers and the vines that run along the floor help the soil retain moisture. It seems to work out just fine for us. And it looks really cool.

 

[pjkobulnicky]

The hoop has a mesh that is about 4" square so the melons (and cukes) would probably hang down but that's OK ... melons and cukes will not fall off until they are quite ripe (called "slipping") ... probably after they should be picked. You pick a melon when it slips under very slight sideways pressure with your fingers.

Paul

 

[momsgarden]

I'm trying my cukes in pots this year, along the top of a fence. The idea is that they will vine over the fence and I'll get lots of tasty veggies. My grandma always grew her cukes so they spilled over a rock wall, it looked pretty and it made picking the veggies easy. I'll let you know how it works. Right now my biggest worry is that the plants will get to big for the pots, and pull them over.

 

[OaklandCityFarmer]

I'm trying my cukes in pots this year, along the top of a fence. The idea is that they will vine over the fence and I'll get lots of tasty veggies. My grandma always grew her cukes so they spilled over a rock wall, it looked pretty and it made picking the veggies easy. I'll let you know how it works. Right now my biggest worry is that the plants will get to big for the pots, and pull them over.

Use a good sized rock at the bottom of the pots and you should be fine. We did that once with melons but built a shelf along the back of one of the fence supports.