Pea and bean netting

[djhs196]

Hi all,

I had a quick, if somewhat daft question... for all those who grow French beans / sweetpeas as an example on pea and bean netting, have you ever had any success in reusing the netting? Or if not (or too time consuming to do so), what do you find your self doing with the resulting half compostable / half plastic mass at the end of the season?

Thanks,
Douglas

[rustylady]

I grow French beans on canes (re-usable). I gave up using the cheap plastic netting ages ago, cos it's brittle and doesn't last more than a season. It's a pain to take down and isn't compostable so it needs to go in the bin.

[roitelet]

I use sheep netting. It just needs a couple or three stakes to hold it up and the pea vines are easy to pull off it. Lasts for years.

[lottie dolly]

I to only use canes for any climbing beans,and chicken wire,supported with canes,i weave the canes in and out the mesh,the short way,from top to bottom,aprox 3ft distances,then push the canes into the ground,aprox 1ft deep,so you end up with what looks like a fence,it not only give the tendrils a grasping post,but it is easy to clean of,to store away,pull the canes up,but leave in the wire,it can then be rolled up,tied,and stored all ready for next year,

[rustylady]

If you're growing normal (shortish) peas, then clematis netting is good. Weave canes in as lottiedolly says to make a sort of fence. It's much more durable than the thin pea and bean netting sold in the cheap shops.

[northepaul]

You could use poles and wind twine or string around them for the peas or beans to grip

[arpoet]

I never use netting for beans, just canes, but i do for peas. Once the peas are done and the early tatties are all dug up i plant my winter veg (pre grown in the greenhouse) and use the netting over the young plants to keep the flying pigs at bay.
Roger

[SarzWix]

I have some very good netting which came with my big bean frame, and I reuse that every year. I leave it fastened to the frame until the plants have gone dry and brittle, and then just crumble them to get them off the netting. I've reused the same 2 pieces of net for 4 years, and only had to make one repair due to slicing it by accident. So it is possible, with a decent quality net. (Mine came from Harrod Horticultural)

[zazen999]

I make my own now.

This is from twine so if taken in over winter it should last 2-3 years...it's tied up as it was windy but it fills the whole frame. Once done with it can be composted. You can do the same with wool and compost it.

[Two_Sheds]

have you ever had any success in reusing the netting?

Nope, it's too much of a hassle. I gave up on it years ago.

clematis netting is good.

Don't ask for it by name though, they have no idea what you're on about !

It's the stuff in the middle of the photo



I also make a fence of it by slotting/weaving bamboo canes in every 3 ft. At the end of the season it comes up, rolls up and gets stored out of the damp. That's for peas ~ beans are grown up wigwam canes, and also on string held to the ground with tent pegs

[djhs196]

Thanks all for your input. Impressed by the alternative options too (roitelet - sheep netting; zazen999 just gets extra bonus points for making your own, and eventually compostable version!!).

Looks like canes or heavy duty netting that can be reused; the lighter stuff (as I kinda imagined) getting tricky to get anything off it.

As a result of the thread, I did scout around for some heavier duty netting and did find these suppliers which I thought might be of interest to people:

Plant support netting

I've not bought the heavy duty stuff, but certainly has the look of being easier to get plants off and reuse if people didn't go down the cane route.

Thanks again,
Douglas

[Alison]

Don't ask for it by name though, they have no idea what you're on about !

It's the stuff in the middle of the photo



I also make a fence of it by slotting/weaving bamboo canes in every 3 ft. At the end of the season it comes up, rolls up and gets stored out of the damp. That's for peas ~ beans are grown up wigwam canes, and also on string held to the ground with tent pegs

I never knew what the stuff was called, it's just plastic mesh to me but it's exactly what I use every year for my peas with canes to support. For the dwarf ones I put in my tunnel I use one strip of it and for the rest of my tall peas I thread 3 or even 4 strips of it through the canes.

[vegnut]

Yes that clematis netting is what i use also, it does the trick very nicely and it will last for a very long time.
I have fat poles holding mine up every 4 or so feet and then cable ties to hold the netting to the poles.
I do have one long pole along the length of the netting at the top, it stops sagging in a bumper year