We have been fortunate enough to have a rather large balcony that came with our apartment. Unfortunately, however, it has come accompanied with an in-your-face view of the parking garage. To find a way to make use of the space in a way that invited more green and distracted from the concrete eyesore across a patch of grass, I've placed a variety of plants on the balcony (21 plants to be exact). While I've spent most of the summer learning which plants can stand Dallas summer days with highs of 107 degrees, there is one plant in particular I've found very suitable for a beginning gardener: the tropical Mandevilla. Keep reading to see how I created a very simple DIY trellis to make even more room for this beautiful plant's voracious vining.
To create the actual trellis, I used the following materials:
- Twine
- Scissors
- Plastic hooks or nails (with a hammer)
I started out by sketching where I wanted to place the nails/hooks to create the trellis pattern I desired. I opted for a simple crossing pattern, though I imagine one could get pretty adventurous with it if you wanted. I had a total of 3 plants, and took that into account when planning placement. I opted opted for small plastic hooks instead of nails for two reasons: one, I would theoretically be creating less damage, and two, my apartment's exterior wouldn't take the nails. I have found the hooks linked above to have withstood the test of time thus far (about 2 weeks).
Starting with the bottom, I placed alternating rows of 4-5 hooks spaced out about evenly (I just eyeballed it). Then, again starting with the bottom, I strung the twine to create my desired pattern. I used about 3 large pieces of twine that I sporadically tied and cut as needed. Lastly, I lined up the plants and set up some of their vines so as to guide them to the twine. That's it! Two weeks in, I was joyed to see the vines have taken to the twine and are growing healthily amid the sweltering Dallas summer.
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