Different Ways to Trellis Beans

Stringing Along

• The simplest way to trellis beans is providing strings for the bean vines to climb. Place 1-inch nails along a fence, so that the nails are between 5 and 6 feet high, spaced 10 inches apart. Tie a 5- to 6-foot length of twine or waxed garden string on each nail and let it hang. Plant your bean below each string. As the beans grow, train them along the string. After two weeks of training, the beans grow up the string on their own.

Lattice System

• Home building supply stores sell prefabricated wood or plastic lattice. Trim the bottom two horizontal rows, and you'll be left with spikes to insert into your soil. Plant your beans at the lattice frame’s base and with a little training, they grow up and through the lattice. Lean the lattice against a wall or fence for extra support.

Tipi Trellis

• If you have the space, a tipi trellis makes an interesting way to grow beans. Draw a 3-foot wide circle in the soil, and then insert three wooden or bamboo poles into the ground at equidistant points along the circle. Lean the poles into the center until they touch. Lash the poles together at the top with twine. Plant your beans at the base of each pole, and the vines twine up the structure. The poles should be at least 6 feet long.

A-Frame

• Use an A-frame for growing beans in a row. Insert two wooden or bamboo poles into the ground about 16 inches apart, and then lean them toward each other until they cross slightly. Lash the poles together with twine. Continue with additional pairs of poles every 12 inches along the length of your row. Finally, place a long pole across the top of the lashings and secure this pole to the other poles with twine. Plant your beans below each in-ground pole.

Sunflowers

• Sunflowers and beans have similar growing requirements and grow well together. Once your sunflower has 1 foot of growth on it, plant beans beneath it. Once the beans sprout and start to grow, train them to cling to the sunflower. Until it reaches its full height, the sunflower outpaces the bean’s growth and provides an attractive trellis for the beans. Use Mammoth or other jumbo sunflowers for this purpose.