My Vertical Growing

Here are a few more pictures of the plants I am growing vertically...

The now mostly empty broccoli bed, the cabbage bed, the zucchini/crookneck bed, the tomato bed and then the pumpkin/watermelon bed.  The pumpkins are growing on up the pergola.  We have been able to fit a lot of food into a small space.

The pumpkins have outgrown the T-frame and are heading up onto the pergola.

A tomato plant trained to wrap around the string clockwise.

Same thing with watermelon.  The empty string is waiting for an acorn squash that had a slow start.

I put anchors in the face of the house to run a small cable.  I put a cable both along the top and the bottom and tied strings between them for the beans to climb up.

Beans guide themselves up

The beans don't need to be trained, they just climb on their own

The strings for the tomatoes.  Tomatoes are planted 9 inches apart then are split every other one up either side of the T-frame.  That way the plants get the space they need as they get bigger (as long as you prune them correctly.)  In the background are the beans growing in front of the house.

The cable at the bottom of the row of tomatoes, the string tied to the cable, and the tomato wrapped around the string.  

Tomatoes like this produce lots of even full fruit and keeps them off the ground which prevents disease

Pumpkin wrapped around the string, grown' on up

Even when the pumpkins are growing horizontally towards the pergola they are guided clockwise around the strings.  One tiny little pumpkin is starting to grow.

Do you grow your veggies vertically?   What system works best for you?

Update on Vertical Growing

Its been a while since I have posted, and I knew this would happen with a new blog.  Just like most things I start and don't finish.  But with some reminding and encouraging from my wife, I'm back.
So, I met with Salt Lake City's Mayor Becker about vertical vegitable growing in the front yard.    He said that he is in favor of the idea and that infact he is working on passing a series of green initiatives that will include vertical growing.  He didn't have a time line on when he will present  to the council, so knowing politics and red tape, it could be a while.  he assured me that I would be notified when it does happen though.

Meenwhile I have been very busy working on my own garden.  As you can see I have decided to grow vertically despite the current regulations.  I figure that if I get caught or someone complains, I will just apply for a varience.  I doubt that will happen because we have recieved nothing but compliments from people passing by.

In these pictures you can see that I have tomatoes, pole beans, zuccinis, crookneck squash, and pumpkins all over 2 feet tall.  Thats right those are 6 foot tall pumpkin plants!  Actually, these pictures were taken July 6th.  It is now July 14th and the pumkins are being trained up onto the pergola above the hamock reachin more than 8 feet tall. 
More posts and pictures of the garden comming up soon.

I'm trying to get this blog more noticed, so please link to it from your own blog or Facebook account etc.  The more people see what is possible in their own yards, the more people will decide to live more sustainably.