Smart staking solutions for plants
When flowers are flopping and stems are leaning, stakes come to the rescue. These simple garden tools come in a range of styles and materials, from commercial products you can buy at the garden center to DIY projects made from leftovers in the garage.
Whichever type you use, the way to get good-looking results is to install them early and match the stake to the plant’s habit. Let’s take a look at some effective staking solutions that keep annuals and perennials standing tall.
1. Go with grow-through hoops for floppy flowers
Sometimes bushy, multistemmed plants tend to fall over or splay open. A grow-through hoop can help keep them upright. Most are commercially made in a range of sizes and heights. Some have an open hoop that’s great for slender stems with single flowers, such as Shasta daisies.
Others have a grid that’s helpful when you’re growing plants with large, heavy blooms, such as peonies, or really tall stems like the false indigo (Baptisia australis) you see above. Choose a grow-through hoop that’s two-thirds the mature height of the plant when the stake is pushed 6 to 12 inches into the ground. That way it still provides support but is hidden by the foliage.
Best staking technique for:
- Peony (Paeonia hybrids)
- Shasta daisy (Leucanthemum hybrids)
- Spurge (Euphorbia characias)
2. Use DIY hoops for statuesque plants
The Jerusalem sage (Phlomis fruticosa) in the photo above can grow to 6 feet, so it might be a challenge to find a commercial stake that’s tall enough. But bamboo or plastic-coated metal stakes are easy to find in longer lengths. For stability, you’ll want to push about a third of each stake into the soil, so don’t skimp on height!
Set three or four stakes around the plant you’re propping up, and using twine, encircle the posts to create a hoop. Start a few inches from the ground and add more hoops every foot or so as the plant grows. Crisscross the twine in a random pattern for added support if needed.
Best staking technique for:
- Aster (Symphyotrichum spp. and hybrids)
- Goldenrod (Solidago spp. and hybrids)
- Joe-Pye weed (Eutrochium maculatum)
- Jerusalem sage (Phlomis fruticosa)
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3. Make fencing for plants that tend to splay or flop
Metal garden fencing formed into a cylinder is an easy solution for perennials that grow a mound of foliage. The openings provide support for stems at all levels. The open spaces in the support above are wide enough for the thick tall sedum (Hylotelephium hybrid) stems to grow through.
Best staking technique for:
- Amsonia (Amsonia tabernaemontana)
- Artemisia (Artemisia schmidtiana)
- Catmint (Nepeta x faassenii)
4. Single loop stakes work for plants with tall stems
Made of heavy wire with a loop at the top, these stakes are great when you have a single-stemmed plant to keep upright, such as the lily above. They help protect against strong winds but hold stems loose enough that they can move with the breeze for a more natural look.
You need one loop stake for each stem, so if you have a whole bunch of lilies, the DIY Hoop for Statuesque Plants mentioned above is a more practical approach. Choose a loop stake that’s about two-thirds the mature height of the plant when it’s pushed at least 6 inches into the ground.
Best staking technique for:
- Delphinium (Delphinium elatum)
- Foxglove (Digitalis purpurea)
- Hollyhock (Alcea rosea)
5. Bamboo stakes are economical for any plant
Bamboo stakes are inexpensive, easy to find, and come in lots of sizes. A bundle from the hardware store is really handy when you’ve purchased a bag of those large-flowered gladiolas that always seem to fall over.
Add the stake at the same time you’re planting the corm, keeping it close so it’s easy to secure the foliage later. Staking early helps you avoid bent flower spikes that keep growing up even when they’re lying on the ground. When leaves are a few inches tall, start attaching the stem with a piece of twine or garden tape, forming a figure eight as the photo above shows. Secure additional ties every 6 to 12 inches as needed.
Best staking technique for:
- Dahlia (Dahlia hybrid)
- Foxtail lily (Eremurus x isabellinus)
- Sunflower (Helianthus annuus)
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6. Try using cut stems to stake climbing plants
Tying several flexible cuttings from a shrub together can help plants with a tangle of growth to climb. Those are yellow-twig dogwood (Cornus sericea) stems in the photo above, but willow (Salix spp.) also works.
This structure gets the sweet pea (Lathyrus odoratus) blooms to grow up where it’s easy to enjoy the pretty, fragrant blooms at eye and nose level. And the colorful yellow dogwood stems are ornamental rather than something you want to hide.
Best staking technique for:
- Black-eyed Susan vine (Thunbergia alata)
- Clematis (Clematis hybrid)
- Hyacinth bean (Lablab purpureus)
7. Nylon netting supports straight flower stems
If you’re growing cut flowers, straight stems are a must, but that’s a challenge with a mass of plants like this row of dianthus above. Nylon netting is a great solution.
Attach the fence to stakes at both ends of the row and pull it snug to create a sturdy grid that holds the flowers upright. Secure the fence two-thirds the mature height of the plant above the ground with zip ties.
Best staking technique for:
- Lupine (Lupinus hybrids)
- Yarrow (Achillea millefolium)
- Zinnia (Zinnia elegans)
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