How to Build a Bean Trellis That Adds Interest to Your Garden

Give your bean plants a structured place to grow with this easy-to-make arch.

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Updated on October 6, 2022

Bean plants climb and cover anything in their path but can sometimes look messy and tangled. Make this arched bean trellis for your garden to lift and showcase your bean plants. It gives bean plants and other vining varieties a structured path to follow for a tidier look. When grown densely, this trellis gives the garden a magical country garden feel and keeps crops off the ground. Plus, it elevates your vines to be the garden's focal point.

arched trellis with mature bean plant — Jason Donnelly

How to Make a DIY Bean Trellis

woman using fence post driver in garden — Brie Passano

This outdoor project requires just a few T posts and a galvanized cattle panel to form an arch. Learn how to build a bean trellis with our easy step-by-step instructions.

What You Need

Post driver
Wire cutters
5-foot heavy-duty T posts
16-foot piece of cattle panel
Zip ties

Step 1: Drive Posts

using zip tie to secure post to fencing — Brie Passano

To start this project, locate where you would like your arch placed. Drive the first T post in with the post driver. Measure 5' out and drive in the second post. Measure back 36" from each post and drive in a post in each location.

Step 2: Attach Cattle Panel

installed arched diy bean trellis — Brie Passano

Place one end of the cattle panel on the ground inside of two of the T posts that are 36" apart and secure with 4 zip ties on each post. Arch the panel over to put the other end of the cattle panel along the other two T posts. Secure in the same fashion. If needed, work with a partner to make this step easier.

Step 3: Plant Beans

Once you've finished building your trellis, it's time to plant beans (or any vining plant) at one or both ends of the arch and watch them grow. Opt for pole bean varieties, which can grow up to 12 feet tall, rather than bush beans, which only reach a foot or two. Pole beans require a support system, like this DIY trellis. Heirloom pole bean varieties include 'Kentucky Wonder,' 'Blue Lake Stringless,' and 'Climbing French.'

If the vines on your plant beans don't naturally weave through the cattle panel, you can gently wrap the end of the vine around a few rungs to get it started. If you add a decorative orb, you can train the vine to travel down and around the orb by weaving stray vine ends or using wire or twine to attach the vine to the base of the orb.

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