Crib Trellis

I have struggled to find an economical way to stake my clematis plants. I have 4 in the backyard and they are not only big but bushy. I cut them to the ground every year and they grow back vigorously!  Last year I tried making a 3 pronged bamboo tee pee. It worked for about a week and then they toppled over. I think my choice of bamboo was a little thin. I should have bought thicker bamboo. Or I could could have purchased some for $12.00 each. But if I had done that then I would never have needed to fix the problem and I wouldn't have come up with this genius idea!

I collect crib sides. I have had one leaning in my garden for about a year. I also have the kids old crib that is no longer able to be given away due to safety reasons. I was a-bout to throw the old crib out when lightening struck.....

Trellis!!!

Now why I haven't used  the old one in the garden for this before now, I am not entirely sure. Sometimes it takes a long time for me to link a need with a solution. Must be the over 40 thing....or at least that's my story and I'm stickin' to it!

So here are my unfortunate clematis...

There are actually two here but the one behind this one is so totally flat on the ground you can't even make it out! 

Here's the skinny on how I turned  3 crib sides into 3 trellis'  in about 2 hours. It should have probably taken about an hour but I sorely miscalculated how hard it is to drive a stake into the ground....and now  my arms are sorely tired!

You will  need:

a crib side ( I have flair for the obvious don't I?)

2 wood stakes

4 wood screws, long enough to go through a stake and the crib side

rubber mallet, but keep a sledge hammer handy, that's all I'm sayin'

Get your supplies

This is where you miiiight need the sledge hammer.....Pound the stakes first!!!! 

Tired it the other way first, as in attach the stakes to said side and then pound. What an exercise in futility! 

Picture me hanging from the top rung, using my full body weight to try to get the darn thing to go into the ground. And no, no one was around to take a picture unfortunately. I know y'all would have appreciated it greatly! 

Screw the screws (that sounds so awk-ward, and what I might have mentioned a few times during this endeavor) about half way into the crib side. Then line it up next to the stake and screw them the rest of the way into the crib and stake. You will need to hold the stake tightly to the crib side as you are screwing or it will be wobbly.

Now isn't this better!!! 

This poor gal is a little worse for the wear but these clematis seem to come back no matter how hard I rough them up. 

I'm thinking of calling this one "The Beast"! Absolutely huge.

And here are all three of them together. The fourth one isn't really that bad so it can wait until I find another crib on the trash and then it will be rehabbed. I love that this cost me ab-so-lutely nothing! Well maybe my biceps paid the price.

I am off for a weekend with my older sister, Melissa, and her family. Should be all kinds of groovy fun swimming and hot tubing.  

I hope you all have a great memorial day weekend remembering our Vets and the amazing freedoms that we have because of them.

Always being renewed,