Gardenary's Wide Pillar Obelisk Trellis Adds Both Form and Function to Any Garden Space

Obelisk trellises are the perfect structural additions to wide gardens or square-shaped garden beds. They're large enough to support climbing plants like peas, cucumbers, and vining tomatoes, but they're small enough to take away and add to your garden as needed each season—the best of both worlds.

The Wide Pillar Obelisk Trellis has such an elegant and classic design, from the fleur-de-lis finial to the simple iron bands. I went with six of these obelisks in my own garden when I needed more support for my cucumbers and peas, and they basically doubled my available growing space.

I recently added four of these obelisk trellises to Ellie Holcomb's garden in Nashville to give her more vertical growing space. In the picture below, you can see what they look like covered in growth.

If you're considering purchasing our Wide Pillar Obelisk Trellis for your space, keep reading to find more information about the trellis material, dimensions, and assembly directions.

Wide Pillar Obelisk Trellis Material

This obelisk is constructed of solid steel rods and flat horizontal steel bands, all powder-coated black. Metal not only provides the sturdiest structural support for your climbing plants in the garden, it also is the most durable option of the garden trellis materials available.

You might notice some rust forming around the bolts after the trellis has been in your garden for a couple of seasons. That's inevitable whenever you have a kit that uses screws, bolts, etc., since these are places of vulnerability when it comes to weather resistance. Unfortunately, the only way to avoid this would be to order a custom-made trellis that comes in one piece.

Overall, this trellis is a really well-made piece that will last many years in your garden space. Mine have survived hundreds of rain storms and one long move across state lines.

Dimensions of the Wide Pillar Obelisk Trellis

This obelisk comes in two different sizes. The medium is 75" tall and 14" wide. The large obelisk is even taller at 86" and has a diameter of 16". (The heights include the finial on top.)

I love using trellises that are at least 12" in diameter in the kitchen garden. That gives you enough circumference to plant at least four vining plants around the exterior and still give each and every one of those plants plenty of space to grow to its full potential. (I don't recommend planting in the center of this trellis because it's a waste of all that great growing space. Plus, the plants inside will be harder to tend and harvest.)

Notes on the Wide Pillar Trellis

This trellis ships across the continental US and arrives in a single flat box. It's not heavy or particularly difficult to assemble, but I recommend grabbing a partner to help you hold the legs in place while you attach the rings. This will help you avoid scratching the metal while you're making adjustments. So promise your spouse, your kid, your neighbor, or a friend that you'll pay them in future cherry tomatoes or something.

Trellis assembly should take about 20 minutes.

Assembling this kit is pretty easy with two people, but here are a couple tips to make the process go smoothly:

• The horizontal rings are intended to go on the inside of the vertical legs. The first set of trellises that I assembled with my kids have the rings on the outside, so you'll see some pictures of incorrectly assembled trellises. The structure obviously still works with the rings on the outside, but you get cleaner lines with the rings on the inside.
• Assemble the trellis on its side on a soft, even surface to avoid scratching the finish. I typically assemble trellises on the grass right next to my kitchen garden. If you're assembling indoors, it's a good idea to put a towel or something down to protect wood or tile flooring.

Before You Assemble the Wide Pillar Obelisk Trellis

Unpack the box; unwrap each piece of the trellis and lay them out on a clean, flat surface.

Check that all items from the parts list below have been included.

The little fleur-de-lis that goes at the very top should be included inside the bag with the rest of the hardware.

Note that the trellis kit comes with wrenches for tightening the nuts onto the bolts, so you won't need any additional tools to assemble.

Step One to Assemble the Wide Pillar Obelisk Trellis

Place the two arches together. The bottom arch piece has a little groove to accommodate the top arch piece.

Put the finial on the arch and tighten the nut from underneath with the finial screw.

Note: The side bars of the arches will likely not hold their shape very well right now. They won't be stable until you add the rings.

Step Two to Assemble the Wide Pillar Obelisk Trellis

Firmly insert the connecting rods into each arch leg.

Step Three to Assemble the Wide Pillar Obelisk Trellis

Starting from the top, take one of the rings and assemble it on the inside of the connecting rods, lining up the ring holes with the holes in the brackets. It's important to position the brackets on the outside of the ring so that all the brackets are facing the same way (counterclockwise).

I've built a lot of these trellises at this point, but I still remember building the very first one with my kids and them insisting the ring wouldn't fit. The first ring just takes a little finagling to get it right. We discovered it helps to lay the trellis on its side so that you can adjust each leg a bit easier.

Once you've got the ring in place, insert a bolt where the ring overlaps the bracket, and finger tighten the nut on the inside of the ring. Don't make anything too tight at this stage because you might need to adjust a bit as you go.

Continue securing three more bolts and nuts onto the ring. You'll likely have to move the sides of the trellis around a bit to match the ring.

Step Four to Assemble the Wide Pillar Obelisk Trellis

Repeat step three to attach each of the rings that came with your kit to the connecting rods.

The only difficult part about this step if you're working with the trellis on its side is that the bottom connecting rods aren't securely attached to the rest of the trellis until the trellis is upright (then, gravity holds everything in place).

Step Five to Assemble the Wide Pillar Obelisk Trellis

Check that each of the verticals lines up nicely and that the overall structure isn't crooked. Tighten all nuts and bolts using the small wrenches that were included in your kit.

Celebrate!

Voila! You've turned pieces in a flat box into a beautiful trellis for your garden space! Your Wide Pillar Trellis is now fully assembled and ready to be pushed into the ground or soil of a raised garden bed! Make sure you push the trellis about 6 inches deep to secure it, and picture all the vines that will shortly be snaking their way up these metal sides!

Here's What You Can Grow on the Wide Pillar Trellis

I have the 75" obelisks, and this height is ideal for cucumbers, pole beans, and peas. If you're interested in growing tomatoes, I'd recommend the large size (the 86" obelisk) to give these larger plants plenty of space. The one downside of an obelisk is that vines can run out of room at the top and look a little crowded. The taller your obelisk is, the more space these vines will have during a long growing season.

In addition to peas, beans, cucumbers, and tomatoes, you could also grow passion vine, climbing nasturtiums, coral vine, and even small gourds on these trellises.

Hope You Enjoy Your Wide Pillar Trellis

From my own experience with these trellises over the years, I'm confident you'll be very happy. So much beauty and function in these pieces.

If you have any questions about the trellis, feel free to reach out to us at shop@gardenary.com.