Learn how to make a small trellis for a houseplant! You can scale the size of this houseplant to keep it very small or increase it for larger houseplants. This DIY houseplant trellis uses bamboo stakes and requires no power tools.
How to make a small trellis for a houseplant
Rhaphidophora Tetrasperma, aka “mini monstera,” grows like a weed. (see my tetrasperma care post!) Mine is proof of that…when I first got this amazing climbing/vining plant, it wasn’t climbing at all. That was spring 2020. A few months later in summer 2020, I needed to add a small bamboo stake to the main stem—one of three stems—to help it stay upright.
Fast forward a few months later to October 2020. I realized that the bamboo stake was not really cutting it. Not wanting to prune or repot my Tetrasperma until closer to the spring, I decided to set it in a windowsill and just prop the tall stem/vine up against the side of a window frame.
Even through the winter of 2020/2021, it continued to spit out new growth and climb. Below are a few pics to show the process. The first attempt at the staking process, and then the sad plant leaning up against the window frame.
DIY houseplant trellis using bamboo stakes
So obviously this guy needs some help. I decided to make a small trellis for this plant and wanted to base it off one I’d seen at a local nursery (first photo below). However, I decided to use bamboo stakes that I got last year to help keep my big rubber plant upright (second and third photos below).
If you’re looking for inspiration for a larger outdoor trellis, check out the DIY modern garden trellis I made last year using furring strips and trim pieces! You can also check out my post about how to keep tall potted plants from falling over using stakes, which is a post featuring the big rubber plant below.
Here’s what I used:
- Bamboo stakes
- Black zip ties
- Wire-cutting pliers, a small hand saw, or something similar that can cut through small pieces of bamboo
- Safety glasses
And here’s how to make a small trellis for a houseplant using bamboo stakes!
Step 1: Cut the bamboo stakes
I gathered all of the leftover bamboo garden stakes I had in the garage. Luckily I had two 4-foot bamboo stakes I hadn’t cut, as well as a few miscellaneous pieces that I’ve been cutting down over the year for various houseplants. My r. Tetrasperma has gotten really tall, and I didn’t really want to cut it.
So I decided to make the main frame of the bamboo trellis 4 feet tall. You can adjust this measurement as necessary for your plant. You can make it however short or tall you want. But 4 feet is the max since most bamboo garden stakes are 4 feet tall.
I wanted to give my trellis a bit more of an angled look on the sides. So I measured and cut the horiztonal pieces to be slightly larger as I got higher on the trellis. Actually, I didn’t even measure, I just eye-balled it while I was cutting. Make sure to wear glasses as bamboo can splinter and fly when you cut it.
My dad recently had a nail from a nail gun pop up and hit his face RIGHT next to his eye. I take safety really seriously…I paid good money for these eyes with laser eye surgery and I’m not about to lose my sight!! BE SAFE!
Step 2: Build out using zip ties
Once I’d cut all horizontal pieces for the houseplant trellis, I started building out the trellis. I used zip ties because I had them in the garage already from a hanging globe string lighting set I put up in the backyard a few years ago. It came with a bunch of extra zip ties. And of course I hoarded them in the garage knowing I’d need them for something!
I did two sets of diagonal zip ties for each joint. This makes it stable, but it’s a bit tricky while you’re putting them on. Just try to hold the bamboo stakes in place while you’re looping to zip ties around and tightening them. Work your way from the bottom of the trellis to the top.
When you’re done building out the trellis by attaching all of the horizontal pieces, trim the excess material from the zip ties. Note—if you want a more natural look or don’t have zip ties, you can do this same process by wrapping string or twine around where each piece of bamboo intersects! Lots of options here.
Step 3: Add to potted plant
I went ahead and repotted this guy with fresh soil for the growing season—a bit early, but I seized the opportunity while I was putting this trellis in. Then I just stuck the trellis down into the soil, packed in soil around it to stabilize it, and gently threaded the main Tetrasperma stem up through it.
The two smaller stems aren’t quite climbing yet, but they’re almost up to the first horizontal rung! Considering how quickly this plant grows, I am guessing it won’t be long! Here’s how awesome it looks in my sunny plant corner. Also pictured below, my ric rac cactus, string of hearts, silver sword philodendron, and hoya pubicalyx!
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