![]() Plants grow in the rectangular beds along the perimeter of the garden and are supported by the outside lattice fence. Even our tomatoes get a leg up, thanks to lattice trellising. At the end of the season, we’ve found it’s easier to pull dead bean stalks off the wire than off the lattice. On opposite sides of this are two 6-foot-tall trellises for beans that have the same type of framing construction but use wire instead of lattice. This structure also provides an ideal focal point. We grow squash on a W-shaped lattice trellis that is located in the center of the vegetable garden. We built these framed lattice supports using the same construction as the fence around the outside of the garden. Trellises of various shapes and sizes support unruly climbing vegetables, such as beans, peas, cucumbers, squash, and pumpkins. We use lattice trellises in myriad ways within our garden. Designate certain trellises for specific functions Square interior beds form the middle of the garden, with wide paths providing easy access. A series of rectangular beds form the border of the garden, which is enclosed by a sectional trellis fence. A simple layout is the beauty of this 20-foot-wide and 60-foot-long garden. The elevated structures also give symmetry to the garden. The overall layout makes it easy to cultivate, plant, weed, and harvest. Lattice trellises of varied heights and shapes-ranging from an 8-foot-tall W-shaped structure to a straight 3-foot-tall fence for climbing cucumbers-give the garden strong vertical elements and sturdy surfaces for plants to climb on. Paths, which are 2 feet wide, provide easy access to every bed. A series of 4-foot-wide rectangular beds form the border of the garden, while five 8-foot-square interior beds form the middle of the garden. Our vegetable garden, which is 20 feet wide and 60 feet long, is completely enclosed by sections of lattice fencing. To this day, we still have not been troubled by furry intruders. If we gave so much attention to the functional structures in our flower beds, why not do the same for the vegetable garden? So we took down the chicken wire and built a framed lattice fence in keeping with the trellises in our ornamental gardens. Because we frequently have people visiting our flower garden, we wanted something that would complement its attractiveness. It served its purpose, but after a while, it started to rust (letting in unwanted visitors) and hardly reflected the joy and beauty of what is enclosed. Not being anxious to share our vegetables with any animals, we bought some chicken wire, cut some posts, and put up a fence around the garden. We had also seen deer swim across the lake and run around our property. We found that rabbits enjoyed nibbling many of the new green shoots that emerged, so we knew we would have to protect the garden from those intruders. ![]() With the location of our vegetable garden set, we had to decide what our garden would look like, and some of the local wildlife offered design assistance. Use fences to develop the garden framework Short panels serve as garden partitions and support for climbing squash. We soon decided that lattice was the perfect solution. Fences seemed like the best defense, but we wanted something that would be attractive, inexpensive, and functional. The only problem with the garden being so far from the house was that it was hard to defend against critters. The only solution was to create a series of raised beds at the bottom of our property by the lake, where sufficient sunlight reached the ground. The builders suggested that we cut down some of the trees to make space for a garden, but we didn’t want to. We knew of flowers and shrubs that would do well in the shade, but vegetables need sunshine. ![]() We realized the dense shade of the many tall oaks and hickory trees would prevent us from growing vegetables around the house. When we were building our house on a lakeshore in southwestern Michigan, it wasn’t immediately clear where we would put the vegetable garden. ![]()
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