JMO but I have never found chicken wire to be good for trellising anything. It is difficult to support effectively so it sags with even the slightest weight (and bean vines can get quite heavy), it's difficult if not impossible to access for picking, fruit gets pinched into the wires, and almost impossible to clean up art season's end. Most any kind of welded wire fencing works 10x better.

Dave

Thanks. That was kinda my thought too. I much prefer the welded wire, and I already use it for a lot (like my tomato cages). I have a lot of 36" fence and a lot of 4' green metal posts left over from planting new trees a few years ago and keeping the dogs away from them until they grew big enough. I also have 3/4" PVC sprinkler pipe left over too. So I'm putting a series of hoops in a row in my garden out of the posts and arched PVC zip-tied to the tops. The fencing will drape over those, in alternating sections (so I can reach in from either side of each section). My raised bed is 4'x20', so I should be able to fit 4 arch fence sections in. Not to walk under (each arch will only be about 4' tall and 30" across), but wide enough to reach into from the side.

I want the hoops lined up in a row like that because I plan to drape a big sheet of plastic over the entire bed in Spring so I can plant about 3 weeks earlier. Then in the heat of the Summer I might drape shade cloth over parts of it as needed.

It's just gonna be a little more of a stretch to reach into the back when each trellis section is 36" wide instead of 24". But it should work.

My husband uses a wire called farm wire. It is heavier than chicken wire.

If you add a cross-piece to the top of the posts then whatever you use for the trellis material should not sag. I used cheap nylon trellis netting for this trellis last year for cucumbers...they grew to the top of it. Six-foot t-posts with a ten-foot piece of conduit (1"?) at the top...the conduit was threaded through the netting. I laid it to the side this past winter and looks like it's good-to-go again this year.

https://garden.org/pics/2017-08-02/Intheswamp/21218c.jpg

ETA: I had already pulled the vines when this picture was taken.

I use chicken wire for lots of trellising, but only for peas, beans, cherry tomatoes, and climbing greens like malabar spinach. Can't imagine using it for heavier stuff, the stems of which the wire would slice. The advantage of heavier gauge fencing is that it offers some intrinsic structural stability, which is important when holding heavy stuff. But as noted above, if you have good vertical supports and cross-pieces, the sag will be minimal for chicken wire. Chicken wire is lightweight, so moving it around is easy. I use PVC for supports, on which the wire is threaded, and a 7 foot tall x 5 foot wide trellis can be lifted off with fingertips, which I do every season to allow easy cultivation.

I have chicken wire between my cattle panels just to add extra climbing area..I had it so I used it, but not my first choice. As a previous poster said..farm fencing is a much better choice.

"So I'm putting a series of hoops in a row in my garden out of the posts and arched PVC zip-tied to the tops."

Not sure of what type of poles you will be using, but I use PVC T's; a 1.25" PVC T fits tightly over a standard T-post. I route construction rebar through those (to which I attach string trellis) but you could just as easily attach PVC conduit to both open sides of the T, then bend them down to form hoops. (You would probably need a reducer attached to the T, to adapt to the presumably smaller PVC of the hoops.) The bottom end of the PVC could slip over metal stakes; I use cut lengths of 3/8" rebar (driven into the ground) to secure the legs of my PVC pepper cages.

I would not recommend using chicken wire as the trellis material, especially over a flexible frame such as PVC. It could be easily bent by weight, wind, or by pulling on it during harvest. As already stated by others, welded wire would be a better option. If appearance is not an issue, I would recommend concrete reinforcing mesh (remesh). It is stronger, has openings large enough to reach through, and is generally cheaper than galvanized fencing. Remesh is really durable too, I rolled some into cylindrical tomato cages, they have so far lasted 20 years.

The poles I have are similar to T-posts but a little more lightweight (more U-shaped steel). Unfortunately they're still a bit too big to actually slip the PVC directly only (which would have been ideal), but a couple of zip ties will do the trick to attach the PVC firmly along the "U" groove. I already have a bunch of leftovers so it's not worth going out and buying more to make it a little more perfect.

After some thought, pretty sure I'll just use the welded wire instead. It'll be a little harder to reach inside the back of wider sections, but it's not that big of a deal. And it's a lot easier to clean up and reuse at the end of the season too.

What you're describing are U-posts. They are stamped metal posts rather than extruded metal posts like t-posts. The channels (u's) and the fence hanger tabs are handy for different uses.

If I was doing this, I'd forgo a hoop and simply use two slanted, flat trellises leaned against each other to form a "tent-like" structure. It seems it would be less problematical to stabilize than trying to form hoops that exert pressure outward on the short posts. I feel that the result would be more growing area, too, if you simply extend the posts with the pvc pieces without bending them, tied together at the peak with possible a solid cross piece at the peak tieing it all together....zip ties, drilled holes, wire, twine, etc.,.

Just an option... :)

Best wishes,

Ed

I'm not sure what you're describing exactly but I like using the 6" string trellis similar to the pictures and descriptions above. If you use a beam across the top, and/or make a 'tent' shape it can be quite strong with just the string trellis. I've been using the <$2 8' wood 'chopsticks' they sell at HD with screws and zip ties.

Thanks Ed. I actually have a dual intent for the hoops -- one as a climbing trellis, and the other to support throwing a sheet of plastic over the whole bed to extend the season a few weeks and start seed sooner. So I'm trying to avoid sharp points and corners that might cut through the plastic (thus prefer a curved arch). The wind will be pushing on it at times, and I'll probably be pulling it on/off a lot day/night.

I can always try different things, but I think what I have in mind will work pretty well. Actually I may not even need the PVC arches if using welded wire fence. It stays pretty firm in a curve shape if not spanning too wide a distance. All of my tomato cages are welded wire fence, and it supports itself very well in a curve.

We've all got plans. :) Go for it!!! ;)

I used 4 ft chicken wire for cantaloupe this year and it worked wonderfully, I used bamboo poles and two 5 ft metal fencing posts (for extra suppprt) and made an A frame trellis. as the fruit grew it hung under the wire or as it got bigger laid over the wire just so, the wire never cut the vines. Once the melons got as big as my hand, i got nets to go around them and used S hooks to hook on wire to relieve the weight on the vine. Worked perfectfully! And I'll definitely do it again.

I used deck lattice propped at a slight angle to get more sun supported by rebar and zip strips. Rebar last forever and is a lot stronger then store stakes. And cheaper. It holds large butternut squash and cucs just fine.