I think the fencing itself would be fine for anything with tendrils as long as it was supported robustly. I'd suggest something bigger than 1 inch for the posts and hammer them well into the ground. Or use the one inch but add bracing stays at an angle.

Your concerns with too fine mesh are well founded. You'll have a significant number of deformed fruit using it. Look for larger openings. You should be able to find something at a reasonable price.

It would work.

I only grow cukes in groups of three. I have a tall wooden structure from which I hang some twine for the pole beans and cukes. I have to wind the cukes every day, but it works really well for Baby Fingers.

Linda

You can clean, sanitize, and reuse a plastic mesh many times. I would also stay clear of wood that cannot be sanitized.

Barrie - how does the mesh size deform the fruit? Don't they hang down the sides of the netting rather than growing through the holes? I was seeing the mesh as support for the tendrils only, not as something the cucumbers themselves would interact with.

I am also curious as to why you would need to sanitize the wood?

Been using plastic fencing for years. Agree with floral that you'll need a post thicker than 1 inch for cukes and squash otherwise the whole thing is going to become a collapsed mess. Also agree with Barrie that you'll have to be on the lookout to prevent the fruits from getting stuck in the fence. If a cucumber fruit grows throw the fence it will have a girdling effect on the fruit and you'll have to cut it out.

Rodney

Thanks Rodney for answer. I tried to pull up a photo of a cucumber caught in even my larger 4x6" mesh but couldn't find. Those blossoms can try to set fruit in the oddest places.

For prevention of harmful fungal and bacterial diseases replacing wood is often one of the first recommendations. Even some insects like stink bugs will overwinter in and around wood.

Thanks everyone for the great feedback. I think I am going to try using this fence material but cutting out cross lines to make the grid holes large. The idea is to create an inverted V shaped trellis that comes of the side of one of my beds, goes up and over a dead spot in the area, and the other legs rest on the arch wall. This will create an archway trellis where hopefully the veggies will grow and hang down and I can go underneath it and harvest. See my rudimentary drawing below. This should allow me to maximize my 4x8' bed on the left as the zuchini took up a lot of space last year.

On the bed picture below, you will see the trellis I built with 1" (I think) cedar lumber and nylon trellis netting. I was thinking of using those same lumber to build my v shape for the cucumber and zucchini trellis. You really dont think 3-4 poles on each V side would be strong enough?

I don't want to suggest too many changes since you are on the right path. I just believe most Vic's will soon outgrow the shorter trellis. I can't harp too much since mine are always taller than I plan.

"I was thinking of using those same lumber to build my v shape for the
cucumber and zucchini trellis. You really dont think 3-4 poles on each V
side would be strong enough?"

A V-shaped trellis has more structure to it and is more rigid than a stand alone trellis (like the one you have in your pic) so a 1 inch lumber might work.

Oh, and here's a pic (not mine) of a cucumber stuck in a chicken wire trellis. It shows the girdling effect that I mentioned earlier.

Rodney

" I just believe most Vic's will soon outgrow the shorter trellis." When you say "Vic's", what do you mean?

Last year when I built my raised beds, it was my first year growing vegetables. My snow peas definitely grew higher than that trellis could go.

I cut some sections out of the fencing to create a new trellis hole. First is the stock at 1x1, then 2x2, and then 3.25x3.25 squares. Trying to decide which I want to go with....maybe the 3.25 x 3.25?

Sorry, meant "Cucs ".

Does it really matter if the odd cuke gets stuck in a square? My plants are so prolific that I really don't think I would care! In addition, I'm outside checking on them every day, so I'd probably spot any problem.

Linda

Linda, that too is a valid point. I think with the way I will setup a trellis, it might be nice to have a larger square to pull cukes through to dangle.

I have used that exact type of fencing for growing cucumbers (and peas) and never bothered to make the squares larger. If i did have cucumbers caught in between them I don't remember it. Besides, the small effort of removing a couple cucumbers from between fencing is far outweighed by the much larger effort of cutting out all those squares in my opinion.

It is snowing in the Seattle area and I am on paternity leave, so I have a little time for projects inside. Im going to go ahead and cut it down to a 2x2 square. I will post some pictures of progress.

Would cucumbers, melons, and squash climb and go up and over the top of a L shaped trellis? I was thinking about doing an inverted L shape trellis on the bed I showed in the pictures with an existing trellis by adding on to the top horizontally. That trellis definitely wasn't tall enough last year and with the bed on legs, extending it more vertically would make maintenance challenging.

Hum, @Gardening Organic had posted a link about using PVC and plastic netting. I saw the email, but its not hre. Anyways, that seems like a pretty dang good idea. You can even make an A frame pretty easy! I will add this to my list of things to do :)