Summer time can get quite hot in these parts, although I should be careful what I say as this year has so far been very mild. Even so, a bit of direct sun can go a long way when it comes to shade loving plants.

What is needed is a bit of temporary shade that can be put aside when winter kicks in and deposits lots of the white stuff everywhere. We thought about something quick and dirty, like tarpaulin or cloth, but by the time you secure that against posts it’s not so quick anymore and it’s definitely dirty.

Luckily we had some bits of wood lattice left over, and so that got pressed into duty.

01 Shade
01 Shade

The cheapest wood to use is pressure tested (PT), which is what the top frame is. You have to be a bit careful about sticking PT into earth if you’re going to grow vegetables and edibles though. I don’t know whether the chemicals do leach or not, but it’s always better to be safe than sorry. With that in mind the vertical posts are made from cedar posts which are a little more pricey, but not too much.

Since my knowledge of joints is pretty minimal I just made some 45 degree cuts and used triangles to secure the corners.

02 Shade
02 Shade

By now you have probably spotted the slight flaw in the design - they are too high. They still create shade, but not as much as we’d like. All we need to do is to cut down the verticals by 8” or so. But it’s surprising how much resistance there is when the project is in and there is more to do on the list.