Novel way of growing Courgettes

[Ricardo]

We spent a very pleasant day at Chartwell in Kent (Winston Churchill's home) last week. We paid a visit to the very large kitchen garden and apart from being very jealous of the obvious success professional gardeners have had there compared to my abysmal year, I was interested to notice that they appear to have grown their courgettes vertically on canes, just like beans.
I'd not seen cordons done this way. Is it fairly common? It seems to make good sense because I do find the few that I did manage to grow were often nibbled by mice.
Also there is an obvious space benefit.
Are there any drawbacks with this method? Presumably other similar growing veg could be done the same way.

[JetSetPhil]

The benefits of growing members of the courgette family vertical is that it saves a lot of space, the fruit is hanging in the air which stops them rotting on the ground and keeps them out of the way of slugs. I believe other veg such as pumpkins and squash can be grown vertically but the fruit has to be supported with string or netting. I cant really think of many negatives other than the time taken to create a support structure for the plant to climb

[scarey55]

I like that idea, it stops the little blighters hiding for long enough to turn into marrows!

[rustylady]

It won't work with bush courgettes though.

[veggiechicken]

I'm growing Tromba d'Albenga this year - it has tendrils and climbs a bit but still needs tying in
Here's a previous thread
http://www.growfruitandveg.co.uk/gra...tte_28249.html

[ancee]

I parked my car infront of a garden yesterday and a chinese man was in the garden, as i walked by I noticed he had courgette flowers all over his tall box hedge which enclosed his garden. On closer (nosey!) inspection I realised he had grown the plants up and over his entire hedge so he had loads of room in his garden as the plants had taken up no room at all. What a brilliant idea! His hedge looked lovely too. I supposed he'd clipped it before the plants had been trained over it. But how clever of him to plant in this way, i'd never seen it before, I haven't got a hedge or i'd be tempted to try it out myself, as courgettes and the like do take up a heck of a lot of space!

[Feral007]

Hmmm, the courgette I had last year (was called a zuchinni) but it was huge! Wide, not tall. So I guess it must have been a Bush Zuchinni, personally I was calling at monster. I was looking at the raised beds I made out of bedframes and thinking they wouldn't be large enough for all I'm planning to put in them.

I think I'm going to have to make another garden between them for those monsters. I've got so many seeds I can't waste them and buy climbing zuchinni's instead. I do like a few Marrows, because I stuff them and they taste great.

[thegreatcob]

rustylady you are wrong you can grow bush courgettes this way you just need to train them a little bit.

[lottie dolly]

rustylady you are wrong you can grow bush courgettes this way you just need to train them a little bit.

this is a new one on me,a bush,is just that,it grows in all directions,have you had personal experience of this,what variety and pictures please,if not would you describe just how to,train them a little bit,and how fare did you get it to climb and up what,

[veggiechicken]

Agreed, Lottie, I'm curious too. I can't see how you can train anything to climb, or scramble, unless its sends out shoots of some sort
So, TheGreatCob, do explain

[zazen999]

This is the frame that I'd usually grow my courgettes and trailing squashes up...unfortunately this year they all got munched and as soon as the frame was taken down - then my trailing squashes decided to start trailing.

[zazen999]

rustylady you are wrong you can grow bush courgettes this way you just need to train them a little bit.

Please don't just tell people they are wrong and walk off. Either give examples of how to do things or leave it. It's incredibly rude to tell someone they are wrong without giving them an example of how the thing they are wrong about works. Thanks.

[thegreatcob]

zazen999 guess forgot to include the link.
How to Train a Zucchini Plant to Grow Up a Trellis | eHow.com

[rustylady]

Read your link Greatcob, but they are talking about a vining (or trailing) courgette, not a bush variety.

[lottie dolly]

zazen999 guess forgot to include the link.
How to Train a Zucchini Plant to Grow Up a Trellis | eHow.com

thankyou for comming back and makeing things clearer