On 10/02/18 17:33, Charlie Pridham wrote:
On 10/02/2018 10:13, Jeff Layman wrote:
I'm fed up with the Gardman thin tube junk rusting within a couple of
years, so have been looking for something much more substantial (and
expensive). Anyone got any experience of Poppy Forge - specifically the
Arcadia Arch? See:

https://www.amazon.co.uk/Poppy-Forge-Unique-Arcadia-Flexible/dp/B00IHZJ5ZG/ref=sr_1_2?ie=UTF8&qid=1518210523&sr=8-2&keywords=poppy+forge


But available cheaper elsewhere.


You can use Black MDPE water piping, first put steel reinforcing bars in
where you want the vertical posts, height of these needs to be the same
as your intended vertical height, slide the pipe down over horizontals
again need the reinforcing bars to be straight. looks fine once covered
in plants!

Interesting idea! That pipe is good enough for polytunnels, so would be
strong enough. I'm not sure The Management would like it until it got
covered as there would be two arches of it in the front garden in a very
visible position. It's not that cheap, either (though cheaper than the
Poppy Forge stuff). Not so much the pipe itself, but I reckon I'd need
at least 16 (possibly 24) T joints for horizontals. Those are around a
fiver each.

on another topic Jeff, was it you that also has a plant of Holboellia
angustifolia from Crug? Got fed up with mine sulking in a pot so bunged
it out last year and its raced away!

No, it wasn't me, although I did put in an H. coriacea last year. It has
steadfastly refused to do anything. But I planted it only a metre from a
16m+ ash tree, so it has some root competition to contend with! Maybe
it'll get away this year. I've never bought anything from Crug mainly
due to the price, but they also sell a lot of things which would be
dubiously hardy down here (better to try the North Vietnamese stuff
where you are!). Always fascinating to read about the plants on their
website, though.

Will you be at Longstock again this year?

--

Jeff