natural support for sweet peas

After spending a day at a gardening symposium over a week ago, I’ve been digging deeper into low-carbon gardening, sustainable gardening, etc. In a nutshell, it’s everything I’ve done for years because I was focused on frugal, organic gardening. It’s nice to know I was helping the planet just by being a good steward.

Anyhoo, I’ve also been perusing Monty Don’s Gardeners’ World and reading a book I bought recently, The Money Saving Gardener by Anya Lautenbach. Oh, and Pinterest. There was lots and lots of Pinterest scrolling looking for frugal ways to support plants, protect them from deer, and have everything look nice enough for my HOA. Fortunately, my HOA has no specific rules for gardening, but keeping things nice is a good way to keep everyone happy.

Anya is big on creating plant supports from branches and vines which I found intriguing. In fact, the Royal Horticultural Society recommends growing your own plant supports by using trees that can be coppiced.

“Coppice” is my new favorite word. It’s such a favorite my husband teases me when I use it. Anyway, in the past, coppicing was used to create a permanent stand of wood that could be cut down and used for building and firewood. The tree would grow new trunks which could be cut down later. It’s a good way to avoid clearing large tracts of land, however, coppicing does require a commitment to forest management.

I don’t have the right trees for coppicing, however, I have lots of trees and woody shrubs. I grabbed branches about an inch in diameter and stuck them into the pots. Since the river birch tends to shed branches like nothing else, I jammed more of those into the pot. Since I wasn’t sure how heavy the sweet pea vines would be, I wanted to be sure they had plenty of support. I can always add more branches later if needed.