If you’re looking to find privacy in the yard but can’t wait until those trees grow taller, consider adding vines to bring your garden to new heights. These weaving wonders add dimension to gardens and cover up eyesores with fragrant flowers and luxurious foliage.
Vines grip trellises several ways. Those that twine around their frameworks need help getting the idea. When they are young, gently loop the leaders around cables or latticework to train them.
Vines that clasp by tendrils don’t need help finding support; the trick is to keep them from throttling everything within their grasp. Encourage them to find the trellis by twirling tendrils and shoots around the frame.
Suction cups and adventitious roots — those growing along stems — need walls or fences with texture to climb. But be careful: Although these look good on houses, this type of vine often damages brick or adobe.
Cardinal Climber (Ipomea x. multifida)
What: Small, orange-red flowers with light yellow throats get hummingbirds to hang around your garden, happily visiting the blooms covering the vine. The deeply cut, lacy leaves turn bronze in fall and pair beautifully with other annual vines, such as Ensign Blue morning glory.
Size: 6 to 20 feet
How to grow: An annual, give the seeds a head start on sprouting by soaking them in water for 24 hours before planting.
Black Eyed Susan vine (Thunbergia alata)
What: Cheerful yellow blossoms cover the this rapidly growing annual vine in late summer and fall. Ideal for pots with sturdy trellises, use this to give vertical interest to patios or balconies.
Size: 6 to 10 feet
How to grow: Pop this climber in full sun; it reseeds, so thin seedlings every year.
Golden hops vine (Humulus lupulus)
What: For a fast-growing garden bower, golden hops vine winds its way in chartreuse leaves and papery cone-like fruit. Define gardens by using this as a backdrop, or use for creating quick screens from neighbors.
Size: 20 feet
How to grow: Full sun, a little water and something to entwine are all that it takes to grow the hops vine. May be plagued by aphids if fertilized too often, so feed sparingly several times per season.
Silver Lace Vine (Polygonum aubertii)
What: If you have a large area that needs screening quickly, try this rampant, sweet smelling vine. Coating the plant summer to fall, the sprays of white blossoms reach 6-inches long.
Size: 20 to 30 feet
How to grow: Give this plant a sturdy support in a carefully chosen area, as it can easily swallow small arbors or trellises.
Wisteria spp.
What: Classic, elegant wisteria drapes deep purple flowers on a woody, long-lived vine. Perfumed and showy, wisteria needs permanent support such as a dramatic arbor or doorway arch.
Size: 30 feet
How to grow: Because the flower buds swell early, put wisteria in a protected location to keep late frosts from nipping blossoms. Once established, prune them twice a year: a light pruning in midsummer to remove wispy growth and a hard pruning back to two buds in winter.
Photos by Carol O’Meara
Reach Carol O’Meara, a local gardening expert, at omearac@yahoo.com or on her blog .
