Requesting suggestions for fruits & vegetables for a trellis

Guten Tag! I am finishing up a wooden lattice that I built to enclose our front porch. I used 1" by 2" wood pieces, which are spaced about

9" apart. The lattice starts about 3' above ground level (the height of our front porch) and continues to about 10' up. (about 7' total of lattice) Last year I had one section finished in time to tie up a tomato. Previously, I have only really grown things on the ground.

I am wondering if anyone out there has any suggestions for vegetables that do a good job of climbing and hanging on to trellises. I have 3 separate sections of trellis:

1) South side - around 8' wide - gets a decent amount of morning and afternoon light, with some filtered light from about 2-5 pm in Summer, from a maple tree on the other side of the alley

2) West side (front) - ~ 17' wide - faces the street, with no shade from trees, but only gets indirect light through Noon. Gets direct light from about Noon through 9pm.

3) North side - ~ 8' wide - gets indirect light through the day, but is shaded from direct sunlight by the 2 story house and front porch, except for a bit of direct sunlight from perhaps 5 to 7 pm.

I live in zone 5b or 6a, and we get just over 3 feet of rain per year, on average. (38 inches)

Our back yard is very limited in size, and is the only place for our kids to play, so I am very limited in where I can grow vegetables. I built the trellis so that I could make use of some vertical space.

I am especially interested in:

tomato varieties

cucumber varieties

vining beans

some small fruited squash

exotic vining fruits?

I am really limited to things that will grow in a year, because we will probably only be in this house this year and next year. As such, grapes are probably out. However, I would be interested in any sort of vining fruit that would do well on a trellis. Thanks!

Reply to
slugbug
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Passiflora has interesting flowers as well as fruit. Some varieties have better fruit than others. email Mike at

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and see if he has other vining fruits. Of course, there's grapes!

Carl

1 Lucky Texan
Reply to
Carl 1 Lucky Texan

i HIGHLY suggest Akebia quintata; although, you should, if you want it to fruit in the time allowance you mentioned, buy a gallon pot and enquire whether it is at least 3 years old. but they twine so beautifully and they have beautiful maroon coloured flowers and then they bear very tasty fruit--somewhat between (imho) a passion fruit and a custard fruit---VERY seedy, but the flesh part is VERY tasty!!!!!

just one suggestion: if you live in an area with squirvels (yah, i know how to spell them, but it's SO TEMPTING to squirvel them!!)....you MUST cover the blossoms with bird netting or that 'floating crop cover' stuff....or even just plain bedroom sheets....gently, so as not to bruise the blossoms, otherwise the squirrels will eat every blossom and then you'll have no fruit. ;o(

have fun with them....their trellising habits are such fun to watch!!!!

p.s. i live in usda zone NH4a and have been told by the local nursery they won't survive the winters here, but so far they've survived every winter for the last 8 years, including two where it went down to -30 for three weeks!! AND the one which blossomed (and consequently got munched on by the SQUIRVELS (that word in MY secret garden language means: DAMNED SQUIRRELS) anyway....that one lives on the north side and seems MUCH happier than any of the others i have around the garden.

oh, one more thing----bugs don't like them: i have one on a trellis with a grape vine and every year, the rose chafers, the japanese beetles, and the tent catepillars munch the poor grape vine to the point of defoliation---but they never even take a nibble from the akebia!!! you should google it and see the pretty blossoms and five-pointed leaves!!

Reply to
RAINDEAR

halo, it's me again....from new hamster.

here is the "OFFICIAL" Akebia website

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blossoms are right there on top---aren't they as beautiful as i told you?? and this site will tell you everything you ever wanted to know, etc. etc.

there is another site on google which says this plant MAY be invasive in 16 northeastern, atlantic seaboard states; but i believe ANY plant which has been declared "invasive" CAN be controlled.....so POOF on the authourities!!

again....have FUN!!!!!

Reply to
RAINDEAR

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