May Kiwiberry Trellising
On 5/30/25, all bamboo stakes were tied up to the trellis. Two plants in rows KC and KD had completely fallen over. Note: it would have been much better to get taller stakes that went all the way up to the trellis rather than to have to go through and tie these shorter stakes up.
In order to tie them in such a way that they did not pull off the end of the stakes, I settled on a choke chain method using sisal baler twine from orchard valley supply. This is illustrated for future reference below.
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| Figure 1. The top of the bamboo stake before tying with twine. |
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| Figure 2. Start by cutting an appropriate length of twine and placing it in front of the stake with the shorter end off to the left. (I wrapped 6 inches over the top of the trellis and then pulled the twine down to my bellybutton before cutting). |
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| Figure 3. Wrap the longer end of the twine around the stake 1-2 times. |
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| Figure 4. Now wrap the shorter piece around the longer end 1-2 times This is where the choke comes from. When the longer piece pulls up, it tightens this wrapping. |
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| Figure 5. Add a square knot to secure the choke, ideally this should be done below a "knob" in the bamboo stake. |
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| Figure 6. Final twine image after the square knot is completed |
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| Figure 7. The twine was tied to the middle wire of the trellis. It was wrapped a few times around to keep it from sliding along the wire. |
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| Figure 8. This is the same kiwiberry plant after working the vines up in a counterclockwise fashion along the stake and twine. |
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| Figure 9. Kiwiberry planting after all twine was tied. |
Note that Figure 9 shows that the bottom wire of the fence is disconnected. An animal had entered the planting area and run North, pulling the bottom wire of the fence about 5' out on the north edge. The bottom wire of the fence will be reconnected after replacement fence insulators are ordered.
Update from 2 days later - the twine is staying attached to the stakes, but the wind is pulling the bottom of the stakes out of the ground. I definitely should have purchased longer stakes. Also, it seems like some of the vines are not eager to reach up without firmer staking. I will report on this more as they begin to reach the top wire.
