The structure is called a pergola, and it's just the thing to bring garden landscaping to life. Pergolas were common features of Italian Renaissance gardens, often covering walkways or serving as grape arbors. Today, the same design can be used to define a passageway or frame a focal point in your garden. Add a climbing plant such as wisteria or, yes, grapevines, and your pergola will provide colour and shade as well.
[Click here for diagram PDF]
Installing the Posts
We secured the post cores to a concrete pad with steel post-base anchors. If you're not building on a pad, use longer posts and set them in the earth to a depth of 600mm.
1. Lay out the post positions and mark the screw locations [1].
2. Hold each post plumb and drive nails through the anchors into the wood. If necessary, brace the posts so they stay plumb.
Attaching the Support Beams
Cut the four support beams to length, use a template to mark the curved notches at the ends and cut the notches with a jigsaw. Clamp the beams in place, and check that they're level and that the posts are plumb. Secure each end with screws.
3. When adding the second of each pair of beams, check that they're level across the top edges.
Adding the Crossbeams
The crossbeams are notched to fit over the support beams.
4. Cut the notches with a dado blade in the table saw, or lay out each notch and use a jigsaw to remove the waste.
Make the curved end cuts.
5. Install the crossbeam pairs at the posts first. When they're in place, bore screwholes down through their top edges and screw crossbeams to the support beams. Add the three remaining pairs with similar spacing.
6. Cut the ends of the diagonal braces to length at 45 degrees, and use a flexible stick to lay out the shallow curve on the lower edge of each brace. Fasten the braces to the posts and beams with screws.
Fitting the Top Slats
7. Cut the five slats to length and shape the ends. Clamp each slat in place and mark the crossbeam notch positions.
8. If you use a table saw and dado blade to make the cuts, be sure to support the long stock at the opposite end.
Bore pilot holes and attach the slats with screws.
Capping the Posts
To make the post caps, cut square blanks and then set the table saw blade to 15 degrees for shaping the bevels.
9. Use a longer board with a stop across the end as a sled to guide each blank through the blade. Clamp the blanks to the sled when making the cuts.
10. Secure the caps with galvanized finishing nails and construction adhesive.
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