I need to connect to an SSH FTP server in PHP

First you have to make sure you want to access SSH or SFTP, they are relatively different things, it does not work with ftp_connect , use link if it's just SSH or make use of additional from link

If it's SSH

<?php
function ssh_desconectado($reason, $message, $language) {
    printf("O servidor foi desconectado, código [%d] e mensagem: %s\n", $reason, $message);
}

// Ajuste aqui com os dados para conexão
$methods = array(
  'kex' => 'diffie-hellman-group1-sha1',
  'client_to_server' => array(
    'crypt' => '3des-cbc',
    'comp' => 'none'),
  'server_to_client' => array(
    'crypt' => 'aes256-cbc,aes192-cbc,aes128-cbc',
    'comp' => 'none'));

$connection = ssh2_connect('shell.example.com', 22, $methods, array('disconnect' => 'ssh_desconectado'));

if (!$connection) die('conexão falhou');

If SFTP is

  

You may have to pass $methods as in the previous example

<?php
$connection = ssh2_connect('shell.example.com', 22);
ssh2_auth_password($connection, 'username', 'password');

$sftp = ssh2_sftp($connection);

And the functions you should use to manage SFTP are:

• ssh2_sftp_chmod - change the permissions of a file
• ssh2_sftp_mkdir - Create a folder
• ssh2_sftp_readlink - Return something from a symbolic link
• ssh2_sftp_realpath - Get the absolute / true path of a path provided in the string
• ssh2_sftp_rename - Rename a file
• ssh2_sftp_rmdir - Removes a folder
• ssh2_sftp_symlink - Create a symbolic link
• ssh2_sftp_unlink - Deletes a file

Well, I believe you're using SFTP:

  

SFTP, which stands for SSH File Transfer Protocol, or Secure File Transfer Protocol, is a separate protocol packaged with SSH that works similarly over a secure connection.

To use this feature in PHP, you need the ssh2_sftp .

According to the PHP manual:

<?php

$connection = ssh2_connect('shell.example.com', 22);
ssh2_auth_password($connection, 'username', 'password');

$sftp = ssh2_sftp($connection);

$stream = fopen("ssh2.sftp://$sftp/path/to/file", 'r');
?>

A complete example using as class, which is also on the PHP manual page:

<?php

class SFTPConnection
{
    private $connection;
    private $sftp;

    public function __construct($host, $port=22)
    {
        $this->connection = @ssh2_connect($host, $port);
        if (! $this->connection)
            throw new Exception("Could not connect to $host on port $port.");
    }

    public function login($username, $password)
    {
        if (! @ssh2_auth_password($this->connection, $username, $password))
            throw new Exception("Could not authenticate with username $username " .
                                "and password $password.");

        $this->sftp = @ssh2_sftp($this->connection);
        if (! $this->sftp)
            throw new Exception("Could not initialize SFTP subsystem.");
    }

    public function uploadFile($local_file, $remote_file)
    {
        $sftp = $this->sftp;
        $stream = @fopen("ssh2.sftp://$sftp$remote_file", 'w');

        if (! $stream)
            throw new Exception("Could not open file: $remote_file");

        $data_to_send = @file_get_contents($local_file);
        if ($data_to_send === false)
            throw new Exception("Could not open local file: $local_file.");

        if (@fwrite($stream, $data_to_send) === false)
            throw new Exception("Could not send data from file: $local_file.");

        @fclose($stream);
    }
}

?>

Use of class above:

try
{
    $sftp = new SFTPConnection("localhost", 22);
    $sftp->login("username", "password");
    $sftp->uploadFile("/tmp/to_be_sent", "/tmp/to_be_received");
}
catch (Exception $e)
{
    echo $e->getMessage() . "\n";
}