Tuesday, May 14, 2013

Trellises, Trellises, I Need More Trellises!

As my garden grows, so does my need for trellises.  I only have so much ground space so going vertical as much as possible is the best solution for me.

Over the years I've amassed quite a collection of old windows.  My original intent was to have Nate build me a window greenhouse out of them, but as time passed, it just didn't happen.  Nate finally got so tired of my begging for a window greenhouse that he said he would just buy me one.  Okay, I didn't get the window greenhouse I dreamed of, but I did get a greenhouse.  I choose my battles, and he does so many projects for me anyway, that I can't complain if he doesn't really want to build me a window greenhouse. 

The fallout is that I now have a large collection of windows without a purpose.  I'm not naming any names, but someone says this to me from time to time:  "Either do something with these windows or get rid of them."  "Either do something with these windows or get rid of them."  "Either do something with these windows or get rid of them."  Okay, okay!

Recently I was contemplating the windows and better use of the vertical space along my privacy fence when an idea popped in my head.  Why not use them to make a trellis?  So, after more sanding and painting than I really ever care to do again in the near future, stapling 2x4 hardware cloth to the back and having them mounted to the fence with 10" lengths of scrap 2x4s, I have this lovely window trellis.  I realized after they were hung that I probably should have given myself more space between them to reach behind the middle ones, but I wasn't about to request that they be taken down and rehung.  I'll see how they work this year and possibly separate them a little more next year.  I managed to use six of my windows, and I have room for two more trellises like this along the fence, meaning 12 more windows can eventually be taken from the stash.  I'm not naming any names, but he will be very happy I'm chipping away at my collection!


Happy homesteading,

Candace