Small Trellis DIY

We have a garden in our backyard (really it's more of a small patio than a yard).  Because of its' small size, we are always looking for ways to make our garden more efficient.  We are currently growing cucumbers in one of the planter boxes my husband, Ben, built. Cucumbers are climbers, and we were having problems with the front row being able to reach the trellis we have on the wall behind them.  To help them along, we came came up with a very simple, small trellis they could latch onto in order to reach the wall.

Supplies:

Wood

String

Saw (anything from a table saw to a hand saw will work)

Tape Measure

We found a few scrap pieces of wood in Ben's workshop and cut them down to equal length using the table saw.  We only needed a small trellis, so ours are short, but you can make them any height you need. Once they are all the same length, you need to cut slits for the string to rest in.  We cut enough slits for 3 rows of string, but you may need more depending on your height.  Using a tape measure, mark off where you need to make your cuts on each piece so they are all uniform.  We kept ours about 5 inches apart.  The slits will need to be cut 1/3 of the way through on opposite sides, like this...

Now, you'll want to place the wood pieces into your garden bed, spacing them out evenly to fill the desired space. You will then start your string at one end by wrapping it around the slits and tying it off to hold it in place.  Run the string down to the slit in the next wood piece and wrap it around that one once, and then continue down the line until you reach your last wood piece.  After wrapping around this one, bring it back down the other side of the wood pieces and repeat on this side until you reach the beginning.  

Once again, after wrapping the string, go ahead and tie it off.  

Repeat these steps with the remaining rows of slits, and your cucumbers will be ready to latch on and climb!  

Ours have now successfully reached the wall and are starting their climb upwards!