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in Garden Projects

Squash Growing Racks Made Out Of Pallets

Squash Growing Racks Made From Pallets

Squash Growing Racks Made From Pallets

Squash Growing Racks Made From Pallets

Hey Friends! πŸ™‚

I have 4′ x 4′ raised beds in my veggie garden, and no matter what I do, my squash plants always outgrow them and run all over the gravel paths in between the beds. I’ve even planted one right smack in the middle of a bed, and it still outgrew it and ran all over the place. It makes it very difficult to walk around the beds without getting scratched up by squash leaves and stems (those suckers are MEAN) and do the watering (I don’t have a watering system in the beds, so I have to do the hose dragging thing) breaking off leaves, stems and squash in the process.

I thought about just doing a trellis, but squash plants typically aren’t big climbers, and their stems and leaves are big and heavy and will break off if you look cross-eyed at them. Not good candidates to attempt tying and/or stringing onto a trellis! But, I thought maybe they could handle climbing up a gentle grade on some sort of rack.

The materials and directions below are for one squash growing rack that will fit a 4′ x 4′ raised garden bed, but these can be made to any size you want and do not have to only be used in a raised garden bed. They can be used anywhere in your garden where you want to save precious gardening space and keep your squash plants from taking over.

Materials:

1 – 4′ x 4′ pallet
2 – 2′ 2 x 4’s
12 – 3 1/4″ galvanized nails

Squash Growing Racks Made From Pallets

Directions:

Start by figuring out the angle of the finished rack so when it is placed in the raised bed, it will cover 2/3 to 3/4 of the south end of the bed. The idea here is to plant the squash on the north end of the bed, and as they grow they will climb up the side of the rack following the sun in the south. I cut my pallets to 3′ and 2 x 4’s to 2′, which gives the rack approximately 45 degree angle.

Squash Growing Racks Made From PalletsSquash Growing Racks Made From Pallets

Nail the 2 x 4’s at each end of the pallet to make a rack.

Squash Growing Racks Made From PalletsNow you’re in business. Place your squash rack in your garden and get planting!

Squash Growing Racks Made From Pallets

Squash Growing Racks Made From PalletsI planted the squash on the left to the north so they would follow the sun in the south up the pallet instead of running all over the garden paths. I planted the marigolds on the south side underneath the pallet to help deter aphids and other pesky bugs who like to ruin squash.

The results were much better than what I expected! This almost worked TOO well!!! I planted two plants per 4′ x 4′ bed, and they just grew like mad and produced like crazy!!! I was constantly pruning them back because the plants were crowding each other out! I’ve never had squash plants get this big! Next year I will only need to plant one squash plant per bed because when I planted them this way, I got twice the amount of squash per plant than what I usually do!

Check out the picture below- this is taken from the north side of the pallet rack. Yes, there really is a pallet under there! πŸ™‚

Squash Growing Racks Made From Pallets

And there was NO aphids at ALL on the squash plants I planted this way! And I know we had aphids around because my melon plants that were not set up this way did have aphids on them this year. Planting the marigolds where they grew under the squash plants really did the trick!!!

I hope you found this post helpful and will save you from a summer of tripping over your squash plants! Please let me know what you think and if you have any questions!

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9 Comments

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Reader Interactions

Comments

  1. Dorene @ Seasonal Chapters says

    August 6, 2015 at 1:53 am

    Hi Michelle,
    I just found your blog via Surroundings By Debi and have enjoyed looking around your site. I am pinning this idea to try next spring, because our butternut squash plants are taking over our garden for the second year in a row, and I am desperate to find a better way to grow them. Like you, I do the “drag the hose thing” when watering. That can be a challenge in itself because of how large our garden is and where it is located….add in gigantic squash plants taking over the paths, and it becomes a real chore. My gardening time is supposed to be my quiet serene time, so I don’t need silly little frustrating things like mean scratchy squash plants ruining that. Thanks for sharing the idea!
    Dorene @ Seasonal Chapters

    Reply
    • Michelle @ The Painted Hinge says

      August 6, 2015 at 8:00 pm

      You’re very welcome Dorene! πŸ™‚ I’m glad you found the idea useful. I will be posting some new pics soon of the squash plants actually growing over the pallets, so be sure to check back in a week or two! πŸ™‚

      Reply
  2. Mal says

    November 1, 2015 at 10:53 am

    Hi Michelle, I had exactly the same idea yesterday then came across at your fantastic blog, I’m away to pick some pallets up tomorrow. Gives me something to do during these long cold dark winter months. Just wondering if they can be used for anything else i.e Beans.

    Reply
    • Michelle says

      November 1, 2015 at 8:32 pm

      Hi Mal! Well you know what they say- great minds think alike πŸ™‚ I don’t think these would work well for beans because beans really like to climb vertically and get quite tall, so I think they would outgrow this pallet rack pretty quickly. However, these pallet racks should work well for about any kind of squash plants.

      Reply
  3. Mal says

    January 13, 2016 at 11:42 am

    Hi again Michelle, I’m in the process of making MK2 beds. My beds are 6ft wide & have just managed to source some pallets which are 6ft 6″ so that is my task over then next couple of days, I’ve currently got 1 and a half pallets in situ so taking them down & replacing them with the longer ones should be no problem. Plus, they’ll look a lot better. Thanks again for the idea.

    Reply
    • Michelle says

      January 13, 2016 at 8:03 pm

      You’re very welcome Mal! Thanks for sharing your experience with this idea. I’m sure the longer pallets will look awesome and work a lot better too! πŸ™‚

      Reply

Trackbacks

  1. 30+ Raised Garden Bed Ideas - Hative says:
    April 16, 2016 at 2:38 am

    […] How creative is this! You get to save precious gardening space and keep your squash veggies from taking over. Get more details and pictures via thepaintedhinge. […]

    Reply
  2. Vertical Support Rack For Squash Garden Vegetables DIY Project | The Homestead Survival says:
    July 5, 2018 at 5:21 am

    […] https://www.thepaintedhinge.com/2015/03/19/squash-growing-racks-pallets/ […]

    Reply
  3. Raised Garden Bed | 50 Plans To DIY Your Own Garden Bed - Helpful DIY says:
    March 5, 2019 at 7:06 pm

    […] If you love squash plants, then, you must create this kind of racks pallets. It’s the best option for those kinds of plants, they tend to outgrow fast which is more difficult to water them and walk around if they are placed in a regular garden box. Click here to see how to make it. thepaintedhinge […]

    Reply

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Instagram post 2163472222835103002_667950766 Happy Saturday! πŸŽ‰ Looks like this will be the last day in the 80's for us here in the central valley of California. Our spring and fall here are usually mild and this fall has been no exception! πŸπŸ§‘πŸ‚ I hope you have a fantastic rest of your weekend!
Instagram post 2162122820364392656_667950766 I got Fall going on our front porch 🍁🧑🧑 If you look closely you can see amber colored Mason jars mixed in with some of the pumpkins. They have solar powered fairy lights that light up at dusk! To see more pictures and find out where to get amber Mason jars and fairy light tops, please visit my blog - link in profile!⁣
Instagram post 2158407996949123461_667950766 Happy Saturday! πŸŽ‰πŸ‘ ⁣
It's shaping up to be a nice relaxing no-plan weekend, which always warms my introvert heart 🧑
Instagram post 2156360863501844583_667950766 Happy hump day! πŸͺ I'm winding down decorating for Fall, but before I switch my focus to Christmas I decided to give my entryway bench a quick but much needed makeover! You can find instructions on how I did it and the materials I used on my blog - link in my profile. I hope you're having a fantastic week!
Instagram post 2152010173290504750_667950766 Did this week fly by or what??? It's crazy how fast time flies when you get older. It sure makes getting ready for the holidays fun! 😜 I can't believe it's almost Halloween. Who needs Halloween to get scared when time is flying by at warp speed? That's scary enough! πŸ•° ✈ ⁣
⁣
Anyhoos, here's a close up of my Fall entryway where I mixed in my amber glass Mason jars. You can see more pictures and find out where I got the amber glass Mason jars on my blog - link in my profile. Have a happy almost Friday evening! 😁⁣
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Instagram post 2150341851956449210_667950766 Did you know that amber glass Mason jars are a thing?!? I didn't until just a few weeks ago. I had to get some to use in my Fall decor. I'm sharing a couple of ideas on how to use them in Fall decor on my blog - link in my profile. It's my contribution to the Embracing Fall Home Tour hosting by my friend Amber over at @followtheyellowbrickhome ! I joined over 20+ super talented ladies to share a ton of Fall decor ideas and inspiration that you won't want to miss! πŸπŸ§‘πŸ‚β£
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Instagram post 2163472222835103002_667950766 Happy Saturday! πŸŽ‰ Looks like this will be the last day in the 80's for us here in the central valley of California. Our spring and fall here are usually mild and this fall has been no exception! πŸπŸ§‘πŸ‚ I hope you have a fantastic rest of your weekend!
Instagram post 2162122820364392656_667950766 I got Fall going on our front porch 🍁🧑🧑 If you look closely you can see amber colored Mason jars mixed in with some of the pumpkins. They have solar powered fairy lights that light up at dusk! To see more pictures and find out where to get amber Mason jars and fairy light tops, please visit my blog - link in profile!⁣
Instagram post 2158407996949123461_667950766 Happy Saturday! πŸŽ‰πŸ‘ ⁣
It's shaping up to be a nice relaxing no-plan weekend, which always warms my introvert heart 🧑
Instagram post 2156360863501844583_667950766 Happy hump day! πŸͺ I'm winding down decorating for Fall, but before I switch my focus to Christmas I decided to give my entryway bench a quick but much needed makeover! You can find instructions on how I did it and the materials I used on my blog - link in my profile. I hope you're having a fantastic week!
Instagram post 2152010173290504750_667950766 Did this week fly by or what??? It's crazy how fast time flies when you get older. It sure makes getting ready for the holidays fun! 😜 I can't believe it's almost Halloween. Who needs Halloween to get scared when time is flying by at warp speed? That's scary enough! πŸ•° ✈ ⁣
⁣
Anyhoos, here's a close up of my Fall entryway where I mixed in my amber glass Mason jars. You can see more pictures and find out where I got the amber glass Mason jars on my blog - link in my profile. Have a happy almost Friday evening! 😁⁣
.⁣
.⁣
.⁣
#farmhouse #masonjar #masonjars #farmhousestyle #farmhousedecor #neutraldecor #farmhousechic #falldecor #countrylivingmag #modernfarmhouse #pumpkins #cottage #mybhg #cottagedecor #fixerupperstyle #hgtv #cottagelife #rusticdecor #vintagedecor #houzz #southernliving #cottagestyle #onetofollow #vintagefarmhouse #antiques #southernlivingmag #joannagaines #interior123 #inspire_me_home_decor #interiorforinspo
Instagram post 2150341851956449210_667950766 Did you know that amber glass Mason jars are a thing?!? I didn't until just a few weeks ago. I had to get some to use in my Fall decor. I'm sharing a couple of ideas on how to use them in Fall decor on my blog - link in my profile. It's my contribution to the Embracing Fall Home Tour hosting by my friend Amber over at @followtheyellowbrickhome ! I joined over 20+ super talented ladies to share a ton of Fall decor ideas and inspiration that you won't want to miss! πŸπŸ§‘πŸ‚β£
.⁣
.⁣
.⁣
#masonjar #masonjars #amberglass #amberbottles #amber #farmhouse #farmhousestyle #farmhousedecor #farmhousechic #ontheblog #falldecor #fallleaves #fallcolors #fallfoliage #neutraldecor #modernfarmhouse #vintagefarmhouse #cottagestyle #cottagedecor #fleamarketstyle #mybhg #rusticdecor #fixerupper #interiorforinspo #housebeautiful #countrylivingmag #countrystyle #pumpkins #cottage #cottagelife
Instagram post 2149806301245427694_667950766 Hey guys! I hope you had a good start to your week. I know tomorrow is just Tuesday but I got something for you to look forward to -I'm joining 20+ super talented bloggers to bring you the Embracing Fall Home Tours hosted by Amber at @followtheyellowbrickhome ! Details are in my stories! ⁣
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