Permanent Raised Bed Gardening: Growing Vertically

Pepper plants supported by a stake and weave trellis

Another popular trellising method known as the 'stake and weave' or 'Florida Weave' uses layers of twine attached to metal or wood stakes to provide plant support. Typically stakes are driven into the ground about 1 foot and spaced between every other plant. A larger (stronger) stake should be located at each end of a bed. After plants reach 1 foot in height, nylon twine is tied to the first stake at the end of the bed then looped around each stake down the row. Throughout the process, it is important to keep the twine taut to prevent sagging. At the end of the row, the twine is looped around the end stake and passed along the other side of the plants, again looping each stake until it is finally tied to the end stake at the beginning of the row where the process started. The first string is placed at approximately 10 inches above the ground and another string is added as the plants grow each additional 10 inches. The stake and weave method is ideally suited for tomato, pepper and eggplant.