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esther_b

Mgt. says can't have iron trellis--what can I use?

esther_b
10 years ago

I took pics yesterday of my Nelly Moser because she was in bloom at last. The gorgeous iron trellis I bought to match the wrought iron porch railing of our co-op building has now been condemned by the mgt. because "the insurance people think it's dangerous and could uproot and damage the building during a tornado." In NYC, we had a microburst tornado 2 years ago. It uprooted trees and broke branches. I didn't see any trellises laying around on the street. Nevertheless, I have to re-support my Nelly without the iron trellis. The support can't be too high. The mgt. suggested more "sticks" like the 5' high spiral vinyl-covered stake. Now there's too much Nelly to fit on one of those, as I previous posted. Could 2 of them, plus some SOFT netting between, be a good and attractive Nelly support? The mgr. said my green spiral support "wouldn't be so noticed by insurance people" and so was OK.

RIDICULOUS!!! He said the insurance morons also condemn my soft plastic 6" high Adirondack fencing around the tree in the yard as "too pointy". Jeez Louise, what morons. Any ideas on a non-pointy replacement for THAT, it is used to keep the mulch in place and to inform dog owners that the garden is off limits to their pee-ers and poopers.

Comments (8)

  • on_greenthumb
    10 years ago

    Esther - I saw your post about the adirondack fencing in the other forum....

    I think the netting would be okay, but I'm concerned about the weight and whether or not it would be well supported. Another option is to make an obelisk from three of those stakes and wrap it with the netting.....they would also be more hidden and there would be more substance to hold up the vine (plus there would be less vine as you move upwards cause it gets narrower)....

    Just a thought. As for the adirondack fencing.....spray the pipe wrap/pool noodles first so they match the colour of the fence :)

  • woodyoak zone 5 southern Ont., Canada
    10 years ago

    Would copper and wood be acceptable to the anal insurance guys?! I made a tripod in 2010 for clematis from three copper pipes and wooden stretchers. To put it in the gvround I hammered in three short pieces of rebar and slid the copper pipes over the rebar. So it's easy to remove if need be by cutting back the clematis and lifting the tripod off the rebar pieces. The tripod folds up flat when it's not installed. This was my basic design:
    {{gwi:153941}}

    DH carrying it to where it was installed... you can see that it is lightweight and handy to store. It doesn't look very fancy :-) but it soon disappears under the clematis!
    {{gwi:585375}}

    This isn't the greatest picture because you can see very little of the tripod but you can see that the clematises grow just fine on it!
    {{gwi:163469}}

    It was easy to make so you could easily do something similar. The copper pipe rapidly turns brown, losing the shiny finish and disappearing in the foliage.

  • esther_b
    Original Author
    10 years ago

    Woody, your trellis is beautiful--a real piece of Yankee ingenuity. But it is made of rigid materials, and I am absolutely sure that the mgt. would equally ban one like yours.

    I got 300 feet of 37" long pieces of UV resistant foam tubes meant to protect various bars on trampolines for $17.55 (eBay). I then got 2 plasticized bamboo stakes at HD ($1.25 each). Finally, I ordered some green (near invisible) trellis netting from Amazon. My dastardly plan to thwart the attempts of the mgt. to make me get rid of my clematis--which I've been cultivating for 5 years waiting for it to bust loose like it is this year--is to create a trellis fit for their Theatre of the Absurd.

    I will bend a piece of the foam tubing into an arch, and lengthen each side with one or more pieces of foam tube, via matching duct tape. I will place this new arch over the bamboo stakes sunk into the ground at each open end. Then I will string the trellis netting tautly between the forks of the arch and tie the clematis to it with vinyl plant tie tape. If the mgt. opens their stoopid mouths, I will invite them to feel it. It's FOAM, morons, even if it blows into the building, it can't hurt anything.

  • woodyoak zone 5 southern Ont., Canada
    10 years ago

    you beat me hands down on ingenious! :-)

  • esther_b
    Original Author
    10 years ago

    Woody, necessity is the mother of invention. If you don't mind me asking, how old is your magnificent clematis? Mine is nowhere as bushy as yours, although it's far better than it was last year. It is now 4 years old. Last year, I got exactly ONE flower, but this year, there are at least a dozen or more buds. Also, it grew to 6' high this year and still growing. I have mulch around the roots, which are pretty much in shade, as I have read that clematis like their roots cool. It's the leaves that are in the sun, eastern exposure. I pruned it down to the 2nd node from the ground back in March, and worked alfalfa cubes into the soil around the roots.

  • Tina_n_Sam
    10 years ago

    Woody, that is a beautiful trellis. Oh, my husband is making me one!

    Esther, I am wondering the same thing! I have exactly one flower too and I planted my clematis about 4 years ago. I don't even know the name of this clematis.

    -Tina

  • woodyoak zone 5 southern Ont., Canada
    10 years ago

    I'm not entirely sure how old that clematis is - 5 or 6 years old I think. I am entirely unconventional when it comes to clematises :-) That one is a group 3 but I never prune them down hard as you're 'supposed' to do. I just neaten them up a bit, cutting off any obvious winterkill and stray bits that go where they're not wanted, give them a bit of fertilizer about now, and stand back and let them do their thing! My beds are planted very densely so I don't mulch - the plants are their own mulch...

  • mnwsgal
    10 years ago

    Sorry, I have no advice but after several times reading these postings I have to say your management and/or insurance people are outrageous! You have my sympathies.