Climbing and creeping plants need to be provided with some kind of support to “train” them to grow upright. Plastic, bamboo, or wooden stakes can be crafted into a trellis, while more flexible materials like rattan and wire can be used to form ornamental supports of different shapes. Always try to match the scale of the support to that of the plant.
Column Plant Support
A wire column with sphagnum moss makes a good support for plants that use aerial roots to climb as they need a constantly moist medium. This type of support is also suitable for climbing plants with thick stems and large leaves.
How To Construct a Plant Support
- To form the shape of a column, roll a piece of wire mesh into a cylindrical shape and join the cut edges together. The width of this column will depend on the size of the pot you are using for the plant.
- H old up the structure of this cylindrical netting by threading two bamboo or wooden strips through one end of it (about 1½ inch from the bottom), such that they crisscross each other.
- Bind the center point at which these two strips meet, and also at the points where they meet the wire column.
- Then wedge this whole structure into the pot, with the bamboo/wooden strips fitting snugly at its bottom.
- Fill two-thirds of the pot with potting mixture.
- Then pack the inside of the whole wire column with sphagnum moss.
- Pot the plants (a 3-ft column can support about three of four climbing plants) and attach their stems to the column with hairpin-shaped wires.
- Spray the column daily to keep the moss thoroughly moist.
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