Garden trellis made from CAT-5 network cable
Last year over at The Genteel Recessionista their trellis made of twine rotted away. This year they chose to use wire salvaged from some old CAT-5 Ethernet cables to create a new one. They were able to create two trellises for about a dollar each which in my opinion look great.
Related posts:
- How to make a cheap pea trellis
- Building a Pea Garden Trellis
- Protector of the garden trellis
- Plants reveal your gardening shortcomings through Twitter
- Free tomato seeds
Tags: cheap, garden trellis
March 11th, 2009 at 5:47 AM
Cat-5 is 4 pairs of twisted wire encased in a plastic sheath. I can’t tell by the picture; did they use the individual wires inside the sheath or did they use the whole cat5 cable? I have lots of old Ethernet cable and never thought of using it for this. What a great idea!
March 11th, 2009 at 6:18 AM
It looks wonderful, and when it’s covered with beautiful plants it will look even better! If you like soy candles, drop by and enter to win.
March 11th, 2009 at 7:18 AM
What about lead?Doesn’t most communication cabling use lead-based compounds for fireproofing and to increase the insulation’s flexibility?Is there a risk of excessive lead exposure if this is used in the vegetable garden?
March 11th, 2009 at 7:41 AM
David, I took off the outer grey coating and used the twisted pairs.I’m interested in the lead question – I think it’s just in the outer sheathing, which I removed, but I’m not sure.
March 11th, 2009 at 7:44 AM
David, yes they used the individual wires inside the sheath, but you could definitely keep them intact for some extra strength and support. You can check out the full write-up on their post.Darla, you should check out their page and see their spider web designed trellis. Very creative design.Anonymous, I know some Ethernet cables contain lead but many are lead free. Definitely a good point to bring up.
March 11th, 2009 at 2:52 PM
What a great idean to reuse and make something Useful! They get my 4R award for the day!!
March 11th, 2009 at 3:41 PM
I have used cords from broken lamps as rope before. I have used electrical cords soldered with new plugs as guitar cables. This is a great idea!
March 11th, 2009 at 7:54 PM
Great idea! My hubby always has cables hanging around, too. I wonder …
March 11th, 2009 at 8:10 PM
I had a big long cable at work that both ends have lost the clip and I frequently hit it with my foot then spend 15 minutes trying to figure out why the network stopped working. Looks like I am going to make that cable pay…Red Icculus, I have finally reduced my pile of wires I refuse to throw away with my grow box projects. Probably have a few extra to make a pea trellis.
March 12th, 2009 at 1:48 PM
Seems like a great idea to me! It’s always hard to gauge how your girlfriend would take it though from an aesthetic point of view.
March 20th, 2009 at 7:44 PM
If the cable is marked ROHS compliant it has no lead. A recent greening of the electronics industry