Well... to go with Sharon's review of Gardening Up today.. I thought of posting this garden trellis .. it sits in a window box on the window sill... and has a grand ammount of trellis space for growing vines...
the trellis provides a nice view of the vines.. and blocks out views into the home.. or out onto something you'd rather not see.. as all you can see once it is grown in is the plants growing on the trellis.. oh and the birds and the bees.. that are attracted to a mass of flowers and such..
First... this is a window on the 6th floor... the trellis is a wooden square made of weather treated 2 x 2 's with two of the edges extended as legs and these sit in the window box... which is wired to sit and stay on the window sill... if the window box is on the outside of the window then the lower part of the window can be closed compleatly... from the top of the window.. inside or out there is an attacment to the window of some 1/4" - 3/8 " nylon rope...this hangs down and is attached to the top of the trellis ...holding it at the desired angle..


woven across.. and up and down across the open framework of the suspended square is either netting or in this case a gridwork of monofiliment fishing line or nylon string to provide space for the vines to grow out on... there's passion vines you can see growing and displaying flowers when looking outside... they also have Brazilian vines growing in with it

Nice, Gordon!

That's so neat. Gardeners will always find a place to grow something!

I love that Gordon. So creative. Wouldn't that be awesome if all the windows were so adorned?

yes Lynn.. we could bring more of a flowering feeling inside... I did m first one some 40 years ago... I had a window that was backed up to another building in an alley way.. up on the third floor... I hung a mirror outside in the same manner... so as you'd look out the window you'd see the sky rather than the building... plenty of light ..coulds and irds were apart of the house... rather than a brick wall...
here's a todays photo of their good work with the Brazilian vine..

That is such a neat vine, never seen it before.

Will you tell us more about this vine. Idid a google search nothing. I want to read about it.

this is one of them...
http://www.logees.com/Pelican-... I have on my roof..
not the one shown...
here's more of the variety of the family
http://www.google.com/search?q...
the one shown is this one
http://www.gingergarden.com/ot...

Wow! Can you take a picture of the one on the roof?

it's small now.. just filling out the trellis... it had been in the other location .. just off the fireescape.. and it was deamed by some inspectors as being a problem so it was savagly cut down.. but the lower part was nicely saved so it has a new home here .. it's recovered.. and starting to fill out some.. I'll post pictures when it gets to be flowering.. they also took exception to some monofiliment leaving the top of the window trellis and heading across the courtyard to the roof top on the other side... which is why things are hanging so much below the trellis.. and they fell with the cut lines... they didn't seem to mind the trellis... I'm sure it was confusing to them... having never seen or imagined one before ... and didn't quite know what to call it .. to see what they should do about it.. the greenery just off the fire escape was an easier call... cut it down...it's too close and might impede ... as it grows out.. and there were likely bits already along the edge of it... none was restrictive... but the fire escapes are quite hallowed ground.. and are closely monitored...
well this was the vine 13 days ago.. today it's up to the top of the trellis with shoots on every bit of steel... it is a fast grower indeed..

What a wonderful spot, looks more like a tropical paradise. I would love to see it in bloom.

I see we have other ATP members with these plants. They have database entries. What an interesting vine.
Gordon how do you protect yours in the winter?

i'll have to bring it inside.. down into my home.. or into the cool room I build every year out of foam pannels.. a 10' x 10 ' x 8' tall.. house out of 2" thick foam.. on the rooftop..
the picture is last year... about christmas time in the cool room.. things are not really dormant.. but almost asleep

How do you deal with pests that come indoors for winter?
Love the idea of your cool room, do you have any heat or lights in the cool room?

too.

OK.. lets try this again...
when I find critters inside I treat them like I do whenever/whereever I notice them... I kill them... I was torn between becoming a wildlife habatat.. or a toxic wate site... I could have gone in either direction... I've found plastique explosives work quite well... yes I have a small heater in the cool room.. it needs very little... a the 2" foam building is about airtight after I foam the edges together... your refrigerator has about an inch of foam... the house is double that... and some small lighting... sometimes on a timmer ..and sometimes like lat year.. a single LED spot... burning 24/7...jut to keep their interest up...
Oh this is the widow trellis as it ended it's season... Brazilian vine wasn't lowering at this time ..but has a few buds going to open soon... and lots of passion flowers and fruits... as I brought it in and stood it up underneath a 500 watt HID grow light..on a motorized track...



the trellis is a square of 2 X 2" green wood... with the two lower edges extend so they slip into the planter that's lashed to the building... the top is secured by the two lines going back to the top of the window.. this is where you adjust the tilt of the trellis... to move it in I unlash the window box from the building and bring it inside... the upper ropes support the top as this is happening.. I sit the planter on the flooor... then remove the top lines and finish bringing it inside... where it sits under a 500 watt HID light