How to build a trellis structure for vegetable garden

Green in the garden, fresh on the table. Welcome to Asiangarden2table In my last video, I introduced two bars trellis. A lot of vegetable gardeners are very interested to see how we built our EMT structure. This video will show you that. Like I have said many times, different people do things different ways. What fits your situation is the best. So I encourage you to think it through, plan it well and do it in your own way.

First, understand what you have and what you want to do, and make a plan. I have a 40×14 square ft vegetable garden and I want a strong structure that I can use for the trellis. I will need three rows in the middle of my raised bed, the height will not be higher than my fence. In our area, sometimes it can be very windy. A single trellis full with vines is easy to be blown over.

So in my plan, I added tubes between trellises which make it into the frame structure. To hold the poles in the ground, my husband came out with this great idea. This will hold the pole very well. Besides holding the pole, the nail in the block will seat the pole, and prevent PVC sliding in the concrete PVC will protect EMT from contacting soil at the same time drain any water from the top so the EMT will not get rusty easily. The nail on top will hold EMT and PVC together so the pole will not wobble too much. In case you want to tear the pole off, unscrew and take the pole off. Keep the block in the ground so you can easily set the pole up again. Second, get all the components together. You can get EMT, PVC, blocks, concrete, and the tools you need to cut, mix, drill, dig from Homedepot or Lowes. 3/4″ Canopy Fittings have a 1″ diameter opening and will work for 3/4″ EMT tube. For cutting EMT tubes, you can buy a simple tool like this. I believe they are available online or any tool stores.

I used a different tool that we already had in the house. Third, let start to build. Cut the PVC pipe into 16 inches. Drill a hole at about 2 inches from the bottom of PVC. The hole should be big enough to put through a nail. Fill the block with mixed concrete. Keep PVC pipe upright in the concrete and compact the concrete. Let the anchors sit for a week. Slide an EMT pole in PVC all the way to the bottom. Drill a hole through both PVC and EMT. Insert the screw and tighten the nut. Locate trellis poles position in your garden. Dig a hole which big and deep enough to bury the block. The PVC pipe should be just above the ground. You may need to adjust the hole size few times to get the block bury properly. Again, this is hard work. Be careful and don’t hurt yourself. There is always an easier way. You can knock the pole into the ground directly. EMT should be able to last one or two years even in the soil.

In my case, we want to keep the poles longer in the garden, And have the flexibility to tear and install The anchors will be in the soil as long as we want it there To make the trellis neat. It is important that the poles line up well and they are cut at the same height above the ground. My husband used a laser to set the cutting points for the poles. Again, choose what fits your condition. Finally, install the fittings and bars. Cut the tubes if necessary. I suggest taking the poles to the place you want to install. Mark the length that will fit and then cut it. Tape measurement or calculation may not be accurate. Here are few tips. The top bar usually holds most of the weight on the trellis, so you want it to be strong and stable.

So a connected bar is not recommended. Sliding the EMT tube all the way in fittings will also make it more stable. For the middle bar, you want it to be easy to get removed for growing non-climbing vegetables. Cut the middle bar about 2 inches shorter. Make sure it is long enough to reach the fitting screws at both ends and short enough to slide it out the fitting easily, You may need to take it to where you want it to be and determine where to cut. You can always choose moving the middle bar up instead of tearing it. In my case, I have to raise the whole row up because they are all connected.

If you have a big square garden area like mine. I suggest you install middle bars between two trellises. This will make the trellis structure more stable and strong. If you don’t want to build a frame structure, you can think about a twin trellis which is also strong. Both these single trellis and twin trellises were easily built. Knock the poles in the soil, keep them the same height, and install the fittings and bars. For beginners, you can start making a single or twin trellises until you have more confidence and experience to build a long lasting frame structure. Now you have your trellises set-up. To keep your vegetable vines neat and productive, you should also learn how to direct the vines, prune them and maintain them. I will continue to post videos that show you how to grow different kinds of vegetables. Please subscribe and come back for more. Thank you for your time. I will see you soon.

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