Building A Better Bean Trellis

It sure is an easy way to build a trellis for beans. You just put a stick horizontally in the top and tie everything together in the joints. You let each of the 10 plants run up each bamboo stick and it will soon look like this:

The problem is that the beans are hanging inside this monster, like in the drawing below, looking in from the side of the bed:

Reaching in, finding the beans and cutting them loose is hard to do. (Having a cat hiding inside the bush pretending you are a bird is also kind of problematic – it will cost you some blood unless you’re wearing gloves ).

A better way to build a bean trellis is like this: (and this is now seen from the end of the bed)

This will cost you 5 more bamboo sticks and one more hour of building but harvesting beans will be much easier. And the yield will even be a little higher since you’ll be able to grow beans on the horizontal sticks too plus more sun will reach the leaves.

Update 2009-02-28 20:24:

Another drawing seen from the corner of the bed:

(Totally Commodore 64 graphics, I can’t help it )

The top horizontal sticks with beans are not on the drawing, just to keep it more simple.

Are my drawings making any sense to you? Please let me know in the comments section below.

Update 2010-02-04:

Adele sent me the following two photos of a new beautiful bean trellis that her husband built according to the trellis plans above:

The palm leaves on top of the trellis in the second photo is for shade during midday. The trellis is 3 feet by 12 feet (90 cm x 4 m). Rocks are used instead of planks as sides for the raised bed below, since termites are common in this particular location. Yard beans and pickling cucumbers have been planted – the bush near the end is basil.

Very nice!