Every year about mid-June, I scout garden centers for delphiniums. At that point, I can usually find them on discount, and snap up a few to add to the garden. Delphiniums are one of those short-lived bloomers that take a year to come into their own. The old delphinium saying goes like this: “First year grow, second year show, third year throw.” Last year my garden showcased a second-year delphinium that made every visitor gasp. Several compostings the previous year coupled with abundant June rains last year to yield a 5-foot-plus show.
When perennials shoot skyward like the delphinium or bow precariously under a heavy bloom load, I whip out my collection of stakes. I use a combination of decorative metal fencing, metal hoop supports, and spreading windthrow branches to lend leaning perennials a helping hand. Over time, I’ve learned to insert stakes early in the season, before strong winds and heavy rains pummel plants into odd positions.
I used to look longingly at high-priced, plastic-coated stakes designed to hoist perennials—then invented my own solution for a fraction of the price. I bought variously sized metal tomato cages and a pair of bolt cutters (about $15). With bolt cutters, I snip the cages into long-legged hoop supports of differing heights. The smallest hoops (the bottom section of tomato cages) slip into pots of amaryllis at holiday time. During the garden season, I shove them into soil to surround a clump of Allium caeruleum, a young Baptisia, or a potted heliotrope. I leave the top two circles of a tomato cage intact, cutting the same side of each level and opening the hoop to create half-circle supports, ideal for propping clumps of large, flop-prone perennials, such as Summer Sun Heliopsis, Peter Pan goldenrod, or Siberian iris.
For plants like dinnerplate dahlias or sunflowers that launch out of soil and rocket toward the sun, I grab a classic plant support combination: bamboo stakes and string. In the Lowe’s Giant Garden, the gardeners are supporting Mammoth sunflowers and tomatoes with 8-foot wooden stakes and baling twine. You can check on the Giant Garden’s progress at LowesCreativeIdeas.com/GiantGarden.
Do you have great staking ideas? I’m always on the lookout for ways to garden smarter, easier, and cheaper. Please share your best ideas—staking or otherwise—below.
Julie Martens
writer, editor, & horticulturist
An avid gardener since she was a child, Julie has parlayed her greenthumb into a professional career, having served as a garden editor for Better Homes and Gardens, home garden, Southern Living, and Garden Escape magazines. Currently, her writing frequently appears in various garden magazines—Garden Ideas & Outdoor Living, Country Gardens, and others. She has also authored two books filled with projects and ideas for sprucing up the Great Outdoors: Garden Decorating and Garden Rooms.
