How to Trellis a Houseplant
Houseplant trellising can be a fun and new way to grow and display your houseplants. Let’s explore a few different types.
Tee Pee Trellis
You can use bamboo stakes to make a tee pee for your indoor potted plants. Simply take bamboo stakes and cut them so that they are about twice the height of your pot. You can go a little bigger, but keep in mind that unless your pot is heavy, it will eventually become top-heavy and can fall over. Fill your pot with soil and give it a good watering and press the soil down a bit. Insert the bamboo stakes equally around the perimeter of the pot and angle each one so that the end that is not in the pot is approximately over the center. Tie the top end of the bamboo stakes with string. Be sure to wrap the string around several times to make sure it is secure. Finally, plant your houseplant in the pot. As the vines grow, loosely tie them to the trellis. You can also add a trellis to an existing pot that already has a plant growing in it, but keep in mind that you may be damaging the roots this way.
Ladder Trellis
To create a ladder houseplant trellis, you can use bamboo stakes, or even branches that you collect outside. You’ll need two longer pieces of staking or branches that are about 1 to 3 feet long (approximately 30.5-91.5 cm.). These will act as the two vertical stakes of your ladder. Again, you don’t want it too big; otherwise, your plant may fall over easily. Determine how far apart these two vertical pieces will be positioned in the pot. Then cut numerous stakes or branches that will serve as the horizontal rungs of your ladder trellis. Position one rung for every 4 to 6 inches (10-15 cm.) or so of the vertical stakes. You’ll want the horizontal stakes to extend 1 to 2 inches (2.5-5 cm.) outside of the vertical stakes so that you can easily secure them. Attach all horizontal pieces with a small nail. If it is too difficult to place a nail through, simply wrap twine and securely tie each rung. Wrap the garden twine in an X pattern for security. Finally, insert into the pot and train your plant to grow up the ladder trellis similar to what was discussed in the tee pee section above.
Wire Trellises
If you don’t want to construct anything yourself, there are numerous powder-coated wire trellises that can simply be inserted into your pots. They come in various shapes such as rectangles, circles, and others. Or use your imagination and come up with another kind of trellis for potted plants! The possibilities are endless.
