I'm starting to get my greenhouse ready for winter. One of Ron's MG's is growing like crazy but of course not putting out flowers. I spent an hour extricating it from a hoya who had been screaming help all summer. I've got 4 more large containered plants that need to go in. Other than pruning, any ideas on how to keep Ron's Xenostegia from mugging the other plants?
Thanks!
X
Hi X.
I've made a trellis looking thing that will contain a very long vine, it it made out of two coat hangers and several (8) at least bamboo sticks. I will take a photo of one later, and i'll try to describe it here. place all the bamboo sticks inside the pot (less bamboo sticks if you are using a small pot (mine are three gallon pots or larger), place the bamboo sticks right next to the wall of the pot to make a circle and do NOT tie anything to these YET, this circle of bamboo sticks will then hold the two circles (hoops) you are going to make out of the wire hangers.
Place a hoop over the circle of bamboo sticks and place/slide that hoop down to about the middle section of your bamboo sticks, THEN use wire ties/or yarn to tie the hoop in place onto the sticks.
Place second wire hoop about 10 inches from the first hoop and tie. You can then wrap the vine in and around the bamboo sticks to reach the first hoop, and then wrap that vine in and out of the hoop in a circle and keep wrapping that vine in a circle till it is full, the you go up the bamboo above the first hoop, and do the same thing. you will see lots of your flowers more too.
I even place a long bamboo stick in the middle of the pot that was a couple of feet longer than the 8 four ft. ones on the outside of the vine so that it could climb up the middle.
Basically, with this system, you can contain any vine.
I'll try to make one without a vine in the way so that you can see it. It may be a few days though... got company coming today...and I havent' had time to barely tie my shoes lately.
Hope this helps some.. I would love to hear other ideas too.
A.
edited to add: oops, forgot to write down how to make the hoops out of wire hangers. I cut off the end of the wire hanger that is shaped like a "hook" with the wire cutters, bend the ends and hook them wire together, shape them into a circle shape and squeeze the ends to shut them together with the pliers.
This message was edited Oct 10, 2007 9:55 AM
With my long vines I just wind them up in a spiral trellis. As they loop around and around you get a really long vine in a small place. You need to keep training them or they will bolt straight up, but it seems to work really well.
Thanks! Looking forward to seeing it.
X
