My neighbor’s annoyance this fall was my delight as I found him yanking out a wild grape vine from a cherry tree. Instead of letting him add it to his burn pile I dragged them back to my yard to make these adorable trees to decorate my front porch.
Here’s how you can make your own for any season of décor.
What you’ll need:
- Pruning shears
- Gloves
- Tomato Cage
- Extra Wire (optional)
- About 2 hours
When separating the vines I found it easiest to step on the ends as I pulled free the one I wanted to use next. It’s important to understand the thicker the vine the harder it will be to twist and manipulate into the shape you want. I also prefer using vines that are ‘green’ and not picked too long ago. This prevents the vines from cracking under the bent pressure you will be applying.
TIP: It’s easier to work with shorter sections of vines instead of long ones that can get tangled.
I started with a cheep (.99 cent) tomato cage I had left over from the garden and flipped it upside down. This gives you the basic shape you will be following for your tree. To start I used a thicker piece of vine and weaved it around the cage using the cage wires to keep the vines in place. I continued this process adding more and more sections of vine until I got the fullness I was looking for. You can do more or less or even add Christmas lights to it. Watch out for holes or gaps that will appear in coverage as you go. Walk around the tree to get a clear view of all sides.
TIP: It was easier to turn the tree base than try to wrangle the vines around in circles.
Some of the vines were still attached to small tree limbs and I took off as many as I could find. I also removed extra leaves but these will dry and fall off over time. Any loose ends I tucked into the sides as I went. Any pieces sticking out that wont bend into place you can snip off.
I hope you found this project fun and helpful. Be careful to only work with vines that you can identify (poison ivy is very common in the US).
Happy Questing!
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