What does the sweet pea growers on this forum use for supporting their sweet peas - canes or a mix of canes/netting or something else? :-\
I use eight foot canes and weave twine around the first 3 feet if in wigwam formation or tie the plants in ,if canes are in a row.
But I am growing for cut flowers for show it might be different.
I use 8' canes with jute string tied around them to provide a good support system for plants with tendrils like Sweetpeas and Peas....
(http://i93.photobucket.com/albums/l47/dlp133/LateAugust2007066.jpg)
Hi I to use 8ft. canes and green string I make them into a fan shape rather than the trad wigwam ,just personal preference. ;)
Pickle ;D
Welcome to the forum Bockingbill :D
Im going to try a suggestion that was posted on here somewhere.......to grow Sweet peas among the Runner beans. Its said to attract bees for the pollination of the crop and adds diversity of flower colour ;D
Quote from: Pickle on March 17, 2008, 12:54:50
Hi I to use 8ft. canes and green string I make them into a fan shape rather than the trad wigwam ,just personal preference. ;)
Pickle ;D
Is that against a wall Pickle? If not, how does that work, I'm having trouble visualising that!
Like Star I grow mine with my climbing beans to encourage pollination.
The sweet peas are planted on one side of the 'A' frame and the beans on the other.
See the first picture here; http://tinyurl.com/39hocg
Hi Deb p
Two canes in the center are pushed in about 2ft to give stability and the others are pushed in about 12" arranged in a fan or peacocks tail and cross tied with 4ft canes tied in. ;)
I will be putting them up in the next week or so [weather permitting] I'll post a picy when done. :)
Pickle. ;D
Love that picture of yours Deb 8)
Beautifully done, Deb.
Just like mine - sort of. I do a wigwam with jute spiralled around it too. At least that's what the plan is. It usually looks more like the leaning tower of Pisa, that someone threw a bucket of spaghetti over. ;D
;D ;D ;D ;D ;D
i grow along the fences between allotments the guy nextdoor gets what grows on his side so everyone is happy and i get 40 feet of fencing to grow stuff up.
I use the prunings from random shrubs around the garden for the young ones and then strings lashed between the big branches so they can be tied to them as they get leggier.
The prunings also work great for the shorter ordinary peas like onward.
x sunloving
Raspberry canes (prunings) make good supports. Last year I made them into a wigwam which was great till the wind blew hard ::). I think maybe a stronger central cane was neccessary.
Can't wait to see pickle's creation, sounds brilliant. Also I just planted a few between the beans to aid pollination.
Hi Emagggie,
Good weather over easter and I shall have then done :D However forcast is cold and wet so :( fireside gardening may be called for ;)]
will keep you posted.
Pickle ;D
Quote from: DenBee on March 17, 2008, 20:38:54
I do a wigwam with jute spiralled around it too. At least that's what the plan is. It usually looks more like the leaning tower of Pisa, that someone threw a bucket of spaghetti over. ;D
So Den-Be, that would be The Leaning Tower of Pea-sa" then? ;D
I'm trying growing sweet peas for the first time and planted outside some that are 6 inches high. One is called "Old Spice" which is supposed to have strong fragrance- I'm so excited!
Ive just sown some more sweet peas, They will hopefully flower later than the ones in the cold frame which are quite big now.
It is exciting, though I will be happier when the snow has been and gone :-\
Quote from: GrannieAnnie on March 20, 2008, 11:11:15
So Den-Be, that would be The Leaning Tower of Pea-sa" then? ;D
Why didn't I think of that? ;D
Many thanks for all of your suggestions.
Mrs BockingBill in the end went for pea support twigs for the first 2 to 3 feet and then has pushed in 8 foot bamboo poles every foot. She has then twined string around all of the poles plus in-between so the row resembles a spiders webb. Seems to be working ok at the moment but will update this post at the end of the season.
Many thanks again for all of your advice - much appreciated.
i've got wigwams with string spiralled round but I need to add a second spiral as the gaps are too big and the peas are flopping all over the place.
If worried about the string spirals slipping down, push a few of those telephone wire clips into the canes to keep them in place.
I use them for covering fences.
I will try one year to plants some round a tree to see how that works.
I normally grow mine up an obelisk of some kind. I used to have a willow one bought from a garden centre but this fell to bits at the end of last summer.
This year in the true allotmenting/Geof Hamilton spirit I made a 'new' obelisk from some old trellis panels I had no more use for. They were rectangular but with the aid of a saw and a few nails turned it into a triangular shape. The end result looks good and I hope will last a few years at least.
Those willow ones are a real con, aren't they?
Quote from: Alishka_Maxwell on May 31, 2008, 17:37:58
Those willow ones are a real con, aren't they?
Well yes and no. I had been using it for a good few years Alishka (maybe 5 or 6). I guess it just couldnt cope with last summers weather.
The real problem i had with it was that it was difficult to anchor. My garden is quite windy and the obelisk would blow over even when empty let alone loaded with sweet peaa plants. I tried all sorts of ways to keep it upright but it still frquently blew over in a summer storm. Ended up having to lash tree stakes to each corner! Good job it was sited on the veg plot and not in the border.
Heres a photo of my 'new' sweet pea obelisk.
(http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v159/richardfiler/Garden%20Projects/DSCF8806edit.jpg)
3 sided, with sweet peas already planted and doing well.
Not bad recyling eh?