"Clive Dive" wrote in message
news:6282dd436a841068fb370b9b8a17ca7a.115311@mygat e.mailgate.org...
I am not a gardener , so please be gentle with me!!!

Some years ago we had a Russian Vine trailing along the fence. Every
summer it became infested with what I believe was Vine Weevil. [little
wormy / larvae like things eating away inside the leaf until it turned
yellow and fell off]. If I caught it in time then I removed the infected
leaves and burnt them, ocassionaly spraying with some stuff that I have
now forgotten the name of. Eventually I got sick of it and cut it back
to ground level, anyway now to my point. New neighbours have had an
'abortion' of a conservatory fitted [more like a plastic box...absolute
disgrace really] It is higher than my fence so I have fitted 'lattice
arch shaped tops' to my fence to screen it and stop their windows
opening over the top of the fence into my garden. The Russian Vine
started to regrow beautifully,my idea being to train it along the
lattice and thus completely screen the 'conservatory', but...in the
summer instead of the weevils the leaves started to go black and
'leathery' in parts and then the rest of the leaves went yellow and
fell off...no sign of the weevils though.
What is my best option? Scrap the vine and plant another [ I liked it
since it covered the fence in a matter of weeks] or should I plant
something else? As to questions regarding soil type...not a clue. If it
is any help we are 1 mile from the north west coast in Lancashire and if
we dig down deeper than about 450mm we hit sand. Sorry to be so
'horticulturally numb'. Many thanks


Sounds like the original problems is leaf miner damage and the second could
be any number of fungi that cause leaf blotching or mildews (they are often
triggered by dry at the roots) It could be if your neighbours conservatory
is close, the foundations for it may well have interfered with the water
supply of the Russian vine.
My suggestions for replacements would be Wisteria floribunda if its a
sunny'ish spot and if shady Parthenocissus henryana. Both would give you
good leaf cover during summer.

--
Charlie, gardening in Cornwall.
http://www.roselandhouse.co.uk
Holders of National Plant Collections of Clematis viticella (cvs) and
Lapageria rosea