Have you ever used a piece of another plant, or a plant skeleton to help support another plant? Ever even thought of it? Here are a few ideas on ecologically friendly ways to support your plants - no hot metal cages, no plastic ties, no leftover debris when the season ends... simply return it all to the earth! There are so many possibilities out there if we just pause a moment and see them. Every year the same challenge arises - how to support the seasons plants, from seedlings to tall tomatoes. I like to utilize four different types of props when it comes to this annual quest. Skeletons / Stalks / Grasses / Vines Skeletons? Yes, plant skeletons. Let's start with that. What I call a plant skeleton is simply the dried remains of last year's plant. In the photo above, far left, you will see the remnants of a pepper plant. Shoved into the dirt a few inches, this works nicely to help support a small pepper or tomato plant, even beans, and also works nicely to get vines like pumpkins and cucumbers headed in the right direction. Check your planter pots in early spring before you heave the contents to see if any annual flowers will make nice skeletons for your upcoming new plants. For example, some of the larger annual salvia varieties make particularly great skeletons. Above : Penelope climbs an old pepper plant to check on her Fourth of July tomato Old Flower Stalks Old flower stalks are a super easy way to trim the old growth off mature plants AND set the sail for new plants! Old flower stalks from hosta, astilbe, and hydrangeas in the paniculata family make slender but sturdy mini-stakes for growing tomatoes, zinnias, and sunflowers. For taller, more mature plants, you can use stalks such as dried yucca flower stalks from the previous year. Shoved into the center of a pot, this method has worked extremely well for cherry tomatoes that seem to get sucker shoots coming out every which way. The multiple "branches" of the yucca stalk helps support all those little tomato arms. The photo below shows a young Sun Gold tomato planted alongside the old yucca flower. GRASSES Here's the glue that holds it all together. Grasses make the perfect anchor device for any occasion. They are versatile, soft, and easily camouflage themselves between the leaves of your plants. Where you live will dictate your available grasses, but there is bound to be a handful that will work for your needs. Experiment with different blades of grass to find some that are sturdy, bend and tie easy, and are stout enough to hold up to a little weather (once dry, some grasses can become overly brittle). Remember, most grass tying is just a temporary hold for little plants to keep them from toppling as they grow strong enough to stand on their own root base and even grab onto things themselves (pumpkins, squash, gourds....). But, they absolutely can be used on larger plants -you can use grasses to gently anchor your plants to your stalks and skeletons. If the strands seem to wear, or break, simply replace them. If your plant grows taller, add more grass ties to keep it from flopping over. For a heftier tie, you can braid your grass before anchoring your seedling or plant. TIP: Wrapping your grasses once or twice around the plant & stalk and then tying it can help reduce breakage points. A baby sunflower is delicately tied to a trimmed stalk from a hydrangea. Vines - Turning Weeds Into Workhorses Most vines that I encounter are all nuisance weeds, typically invasive - Japanese honeysuckle and grapevine being the biggest two offenders. These two have proven quite useful in plant-tying. Honeysuckle vines can be used for just about anything, keeping in mind that they cannot be tied as tight as grasses due to the rigidness of the woody stem. For more flexible bends, use less woody honeysuckle sections (the newer growth) but keep in mind these new shoots can easily break when manipulated into a little knot. Honeysuckle vines are best used for wider loops or scenarios when snaking a vine back and forth through a fence or shrub is desired. Basically, you will have a tough time bending this vine in half without snapping it. You can also use multiple sections of vines to create a wider band to wrap around the plant you wish to sturdy - tie the ends of this "band" off with grass and then tie the grass together. Grapevine is classically used to weave baskets and wreaths, but lately it's been getting a new job in the garden around here. These thick vines typically have multiple branches protruding that offer support on various levels. You can make a grapevine fence to offer support to a row of plants such a s peppers or basil, or fashion some hoops and attach them to sturdy stakes for support on various height levels where needed. The best time to manipulate the grapevine is when it is damp, preferably after a rain shower (or you can soak it in a bucket or water). You can also build a ladder for climbing plants like clematis, or even wilder yet, use it for tomatoes. After removing some suffocating grapevine from trees, I used the long lengths as ladder ropes (or "drop lines") for tomato plants that were growing along a wall. I anchored the grapevine to a fence above the wall and let it drop down to the tomatoes. Tying the tomatoes to the grapevine, it gave the me the perfect vertical garden. As the tomatoes grew, they were tied further up the vine. Which leads us to this bonus tip.... BONUS TIP: Drop lines / Navigational help A drop line? Yes, this is something I use when training vining plants to grow toward the anchor point I've intended them to sprawl on. Think fence, arbor, trellis. I use just about anything for this purpose. For training gourds to grow vertically to the wire "ceiling" of the enclosed garden they were in, I hung entire strands of mint (if you grow mint you know that you need to thin it often!) which actually served two purposes: the mint died off entirely with no chance of re-sprouting in the garden, and it gave the vine tendrils a nice thick, rigid anchor to grab onto. Let's not write off the fact that it smelled wonderful. I have also used dock weed turned upside down and other plants that I want to be sure are entirely dead before tossing into the compost or weed pile. Green beans benefit from these drop lines as well. If you are trying to grow a hanging row of green beans (like a wash line...), tie a drop line for each plant from your top main line. The beans will climb the plant rope to the top! If you need to, gently secure the growing bean stalk to the drop line with a small piece of grass. I also offer cucumbers little GPS lines to encourage them to grow across to the fence and start their climb as opposed to sprawling all over the garden floor when space is at a premium. Take these ideas and utilize them as you see fit in your garden and outdoor spaces!
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Tales of Douglas Furr (and his friends)narrated by Crissy Clossin Archives
February 2024
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