Garland Bean & Pea Net – 1.8m x 1.8m Tangle-Free Support Mesh

This is the right netting for almost any climbing or scrambling plant a cottage gardener grows:

• Climbing peas — mangetout, sugar snaps, traditional shelling peas
• Runner beans and climbing French beans — happiest with proper vertical support and netting between canes
• Sweet peas — the classic cottage flower, magnificent on a generous net
• Cucumbers — vertical training keeps the fruits clean and disease-free, and saves enormous garden space
• Cucurbits in general — squashes, courgettes, melons can all be trained vertically (especially in glasshouse or polytunnel growing)
• Climbing nasturtiums — the climbing varieties make fantastic edible-flower curtains
• Annual climbers from seed — morning glory, climbing zinnia, Spanish flag, anything you grow as a one-season climbing show

Plastic pea netting is one of those products that's quietly causing real environmental problems. The reasons:

• It rarely lasts as long as it should — UV degradation makes it brittle within 1–2 seasons, after which it shatters into small pieces that get tangled with plant material
• Removing it cleanly is nearly impossible — by the end of the growing season, the plants are intertwined with the net. Cutting them apart usually leaves shreds of plastic in the compost heap or the soil
• It contains microplastics that can enter the soil and watercourses as the netting breaks down
• It doesn't compost — at end of life it goes to landfill, or worse, persists in the garden indefinitely

Jute solves all of these problems at the source. It's:

• Strong enough for a full growing season — properly tough natural fibre, not flimsy
• Compostable at end of season — cut down the spent climbers, compost the lot together, no separation needed
• Plastic-free and microplastic-free — no contribution to the wider plastic-pollution problem
• Properly biodegradable — breaks down in the compost heap or directly in soil
• Beautiful to look at — the natural warm beige tones suit a cottage garden far better than the harsh green of plastic

• Size: 1.8m × 1.8m (6ft × 6ft)
• Material: 100% jute — natural, biodegradable, compostable
• Includes: Green corner ties for easy attachment
• Lifespan: Designed for one full growing season
• End-of-life: Compost with the spent plant material

1. Set up your support structure first — canes in a wigwam shape, a trellis frame, a row of canes between two posts, or a fence to attach the net to
2. Secure the netting using the green corner ties at each corner, plus extra ties along the edges if you're using long stretches
3. Pull the net taut — slack netting sags under the weight of climbing plants and looks untidy
4. Gently guide your seedlings as they begin to climb. Most climbers find their own way up netting once the first tendrils make contact, but a small initial push helps
5. At the end of the season, cut down the spent plants with the netting still attached. The whole tangle goes onto the compost heap together — no separation required, no plastic to fish out

The 1.8m × 1.8m size suits a range of structures:

• Pea and bean wigwams — drape a single net around 6–8 canes set in a circle, secured at the top. Classic cottage-allotment look
• A run of canes between two posts — net stretched flat behind, covers a 1.8m horizontal run perfectly
• Wall or fence training — net attached to a fence makes a vertical climbing surface for almost anything
• Two nets vertically — for taller structures or particularly vigorous climbers (some runner bean varieties reach 2.5m+), pairing two nets gives you a properly tall climbing wall
• Horizontally over the ground — drape the net over a frame for cucurbits like squash, melons or pumpkins. Keeps the fruit off damp soil, reducing rot and slug damage
• In raised beds — attach the corners to bed-side stakes for compact climbing veg in a small space

If you're committed to reducing plastic in your gardening, this net is one piece of a larger picture. Pair with:

• 3-ply jute twine — for tying-in stems, marking rows, the daily small jobs
• Bamboo canes for the structural support
• Fibre pots for the propagation stage
• Wooden plant labels — instead of plastic markers
• Peat-free seed compost — completing the eco-conscious veg patch

Each individual swap is small. Together they add up to genuinely sustainable cottage gardening — the kind of small ecological loop that suits cottage living exactly.