I got this idea from a reader. She wrote me an email a few months ago sharing a few pictures of her gardens. One of them was a pumpkin arch she made out of cattle panel fencing. (It's the last picture in this post.) I loved it so much, I decided to make my own arch this year. I don't know where to buy cattle panel fencing. But I've heard it's really heavy and you need a truck to transport it.
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| Fencing and PVC for arch |
Originally, I was going to build it the same way I built my supports for the beans and cucumbers.
But the fencing I had isn't strong enough to hold up heavy squash on it's own around the top of the arch.
So we (my husband helped me with this project) decided to add PVC piping to support it.
It was extremely easy to put this arch together.
We laid out the fencing and weaved the PVC into the fencing.
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| Weaved PVC into fencing to support squash arch |
I have some black spray paint in the garage and I plan to paint the PVC pipes so they blend in better.
I would have painted them before putting this together if I would have thought of it, oh well.
The squash arch is a little shorter than I was hoping.
I had to make it short enough to fit under the greenhouse.
Once squash starts to hang down, it might be difficult to walk through, but this is just an experiment I'm trying this year. If I end up loving it, I'll make any necessary modifications I need to next year.
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| Squash arch |
I'm super excited about this arch, I think it will help me keep the squash from taking over the garden. It will also make harvesting the squash easy, and it's a great feature in the garden. I can't wait to see it covered in squash. What do you think of my new squash arch?
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| Squash arch |
Updated Aug 15, 2012 - Here is a picture of the arch now that it's covered with squash. Amazing!
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| Squash arch covered by squash |
I think this is a great idea, and I bet it helps with vine borers too.
ReplyDeleteDo the squash and pumpkins climb it themselves, or do you have to continually train them on it?
I look forward to seeing the results.
Thanks! I don't think the arch will help with the borers, but that's what the raised bed is for. I dig out the borers when I notice damage. Then I add some dirt to the bed, burying the borer damaged part of the vines. The plants will grow new roots as the stems are buried with dirt. I did this last year, and it worked great! I was harvesting squash until the cold killed the plants.
DeleteThe squash will climb it themselves, but there may be a few stragglers that I need to train so they don't try to grow on a nearby plant.
I will definitely be posting pictures this summer! I can't wait to see the results too.
Amy
I've used this method before with cucumbers and squash and it works really well. Pumpkins need extra support so that they don't rip off the vine when they get too heavy but you can just use some old clothes or fabric scraps to "swaddle" them for extra support. Good luck, I'm eager to see your results.
ReplyDeleteGreat, thanks for the tip about swaddling the pumpkins. I will definitely try that if the variety of pumpkins I have get large.
DeleteAmy
For smaller squash or melons, you can use an old bra! I did it this past summer and it worked perfectly for my Uzbekistan melons. Pumpkins I guess would be too large, hee hee! But it would be easy to use a long sleeve shirt by pinning the cuffs together along with a pinch or two of the hem, pinning all together up at the top of the frame to make a cradle for the pumpkin. Nice blog, thanks for sharing your ideas.
DeleteLOL! Thanks for the tips. None of my squash got large enough to have to try this, but I will definitely keep this in mind!
DeleteAmy
What kind of squash are you thinking of planting on them? Zucchini/yellow squash that I plant are bushes.
ReplyDeleteAll of the types of squash I have are vine varieties. Let's see, I have delicata, butternut, pumpkin, acorn, sweet dumpling and I think I have a zucchini too. It's going to be a full arch (I hope)!
DeleteAmy
I live in an apartment right now and am putting a garden on my roof this year. I was just thinking about building something like this for all of the squash I started; so glad I came across this post and can't wait to follow along and see how it works for you!
ReplyDeleteA garden on the roof, that sound very cool! Glad you found my post, and thanks for the nice comment! Good luck building your squash arch, I'd love to see your results too.
DeleteAmy
I love, love, love this! Can't wait to try it next year. This summer I built a similar structure, but it was to protect blueberries and strawberries from the deer and rabbits. I used PVC pipe and wove it through chicken wire--thought it was an original idea! :)
ReplyDeleteThank Susan! Funny, I guess great minds think alike! :-)
DeleteI'm a new follower and I've seen many design's for trellising squash and the like and this is the 1st one that has actually jumped out at me. It's to late for this year but next year I'll be in the know, I love the design. My cucumber's has over taken my bamboo teepee's this year and are going wild. Thank's for sharing this and have a great weekend! P.S. Your garden's are beautiful.
ReplyDeleteHi, thanks for the new follow! Glad you like my squash arch, I'm happy with the way it turned out. Isn't it fun when stuff starts to take off and grow like crazy. I figure in a week or two, it will be hard to walk through the vegetable garden. I love this time of year! Thanks for the nice comment about my gardens too. :-)
DeleteCan you give the specs on the PVC? I have been thinking of trying this, love how it adds interest to the garden!
ReplyDeleteHi Crystal,
DeleteSo, so sorry for the delayed response on this. I painted over the PVC, so I wasn't sure how to tell what size it was, then I realized that you can see it in one of the pictures. Ha, ha. Anyway, it's 1/2" PVC. Basically, I took a piece of the fencing to HD with me to see what size of PVC would fit. So, depending on the type of fencing you use, the diameter of the PVC might need to be smaller. Also keep in mind that if you get much thicker on the PVC, it won't bend enough to make this skinny of an arch. Hope this helps!
Amy
Love this! Like you I don't have a truck for the cattle panels. How did you secure the PVC pipe in the ground? Also, do you remember how long the PVC pipe is? Does it come rolled up or in straight pieces?
ReplyDeleteThank you!
Hi Kelly,
DeleteThanks! We used 4 pieces of rebar as stakes into the ground and then we slipped the PVC over the top. I hope this makes sense. Test each piece of rebar to make sure it will fit into the PVC pipe before you buy it. We discovered that not all pieces of rebar are skinny enough to fit. The PVC comes in straight pieces, you can find it in the plumbing section at HD or Lowe's. I can't remember the length, I want to say maybe 20'. But, just think about how tall you want the arch and figure it out from there. My arch is shorter than I would like, because it has to fit under our greenhouse.
Hope this helps.
Amy
I made this today - thanks for the inspiration! Did you plant the squash inside the boxes or outside? Do you think it would work to plant them in pots on the outside and train them up the arch from there?
ReplyDeleteOh fantastic!! I'm so excited! You are so welcome, thanks for letting me know. I planted them inside the boxes, mainly to help me fight the squash borer throughout the summer (not sure if you have that pest where you live). You could probably do pots, but they should be pretty large. Good luck, and send me some pictures if you think of it. I would love to see it. You can also post them on my Facebook page.
DeleteAmy
Amy,
ReplyDeleteThanks so much for your inspiration!
My husband and I have reclaimed an abandoned city lot for our veggie & herb garden this year, and we constructed a squash arch for it today, based on your blog.
Thank you, thank you, thank you! I hope it holds up...time will tell :)
Here's a picture, if you want to check it out!
https://www.facebook.com/photo.php?fbid=10151615128609793&l=d7b2272f06
Awesome! It looks great! Thanks so much for sharing this. It will hold up, and you will love how it looks when it's covered. Would you mind it if I shared your photo on my Facebook page?
DeleteAmy
Thanks, Amy!
DeleteI don't mind at all. I wanted to share it to encourage others to try it out, too :)
Hope you have a fruitful season...happy gardening!
Cool, I will share it on my Facebook page later tonight. Thanks again for sharing your photo! I'd love to see more pictures once it's covered in squash.
DeleteAmy