How to Build a Movable Garden Arbor
An arbor is a good way to add levels of vertical interest to your garden. An arbor is an arched trellis that can provide support for climbing plants, shade during the hottest part of the day, or a nice focal point when used with flowering plants such as morning glories or clematis. With just a few materials, you can easily build a movable arbor out of PVC pipe as a weekend project. Does this Spark an idea?
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Things You'll Need
- 12 pieces of PVC pipe cut into 2-foot lengths (1 1/4-inch diameter)
- 10 pieces of PVC pipe cut into 1-foot lengths
- 8 PVC 5-way connectors (1 1/4-inch diameter)
- 8 PVC 45-degree elbow joints (1 1/4-inch diameter)
- Gorilla PVC cement
Instructions
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1
Have your hardware or plumbing-supply store cut the PVC pipe into the correct lengths.
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2
On an open expanse of ground, lay out all your pipe and pipe fittings.
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3
Assemble one support of the arbor by fitting three 2-foot pieces of PVC pipe together using two of the five-way pipe fittings. Secure the pieces together by gluing them using with PVC cement. Repeat this step four more times to make the remaining supports.
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4
Attach a 45-degree elbow joint to the top of each support. Twist the joint in place so it will face what will be the inward side of your arbor.
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5
Assemble the archway by attaching two 45-degree elbow joints to the ends of a 1-foot piece of PVC pipe. Attach two more of the 1-foot pieces of pipe onto the other ends of the joints. Repeat this process to create a second archway.
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6
Join each archway to two of the arbor supports by inserting the ends of the arch into the 45-degree joints that sit at the top of the supports. You now should have two halves of your arbor complete.
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7
Insert the remaining four pieces of 1-foot long PVC pipe into the four five-way joints of one of your arbor halves.
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8
Attach the remaining arbor half by inserting the other ends of the 1-foot long PVC pipe crosspieces into the five-way joints of the remaining arbor half.
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Tips & Warnings
Decorate your arch with spray paint, faux finishes, or leave it unpainted. Thread wire or garden twine into the open sections of five-way pipe fitting to create instant tie-downs and supports for climbing plants.
While PVC pipe is sturdy, it is not suitable as a support for heavy climbers such as grapes or wisteria.
Resources
Comments
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A picture would be nice.
