Hi all. Long time reader, first time poster.....

I've got a question that I'm hoping the knowledgable people on this forum may be able to help with...

At the front of my house I've got 2 steel pillars that support part of the house that sticks out beyond the threshold of the rest of the house. The pillars go into the ground surrounded by paving flags i.e. not into soil or earth.

I'd like to effectively wrap large flower pots around the bottom of the 2 pillars, fill with soil/peat then plant some vines/flowers to grow up the pillars and potentially up the house somewhat. Ideally the growth needs to be dense to block out the steel, as I find the steel a bit of an eyesore...

Can anyone see any problems with this idea or offer any advice on vines/flowers? Or any general tips?

Thanks in advance!

Larry

On Jan 6, 5:25*pm, Biglarry
wrote:
Hi all. Long time reader, first time poster.....

I've got a question that I'm hoping the knowledgable people on this
forum may be able to help with...

At the front of my house I've got 2 steel pillars that support part of
the house that sticks out beyond the threshold of the rest of the house.
The pillars go into the ground surrounded by paving flags i.e. not into
soil or earth.

I'd like to effectively wrap large flower pots around the bottom of the
2 pillars, fill with soil/peat then plant some vines/flowers to grow up
the pillars and potentially up the house somewhat. Ideally the growth
needs to be dense to block out the steel, as I find the steel a bit of
an eyesore...

Can anyone see any problems with this idea or offer any advice on
vines/flowers? Or any general tips?

Thanks in advance!

Larry

--
Biglarry

Depends where you are to some extent. Do you want a flowering vine or
just foliage? There are tons of them. Ivy doesn't flower and does well
in most climates. YOU could also use Morning Glory or even Peas that
would give you flowers and produce

On Fri, 6 Jan 2012 22:25:56 +0000, Biglarry
wrote:


Hi all. Long time reader, first time poster.....

I've got a question that I'm hoping the knowledgable people on this
forum may be able to help with...

At the front of my house I've got 2 steel pillars that support part of
the house that sticks out beyond the threshold of the rest of the house.
The pillars go into the ground surrounded by paving flags i.e. not into
soil or earth.

I'd like to effectively wrap large flower pots around the bottom of the
2 pillars, fill with soil/peat then plant some vines/flowers to grow up
the pillars and potentially up the house somewhat. Ideally the growth
needs to be dense to block out the steel, as I find the steel a bit of
an eyesore...

Can anyone see any problems with this idea or offer any advice on
vines/flowers? Or any general tips?

You don't indicate in what climate you live so I will assume four
seasons. When vines drop their leaves in winter they look very ugly
twined around metal pillars. Why can't you remove a flagstone and
plant directly into the ground, that way you can plant an evergreen
that will hide the steel pillars all year. I would suggest one of the
columnar junipers, they're dense and can be sheared. They're also
available in several colorations, I happen to like the blue grey
varietals. Of course there are other solutions such as painting the
metal a color that blends in better, or covering the pillars with
lumber to match your house... there are also vinyl columns that can
replace or slip around the metal pillars and in many configurations.
http://www.columnstore.com/vinyl-columns.shtml

OK thanks for the advice guys. I fancy the idea of vines and might pull up the flagstones, would a large flower pot not suffice then? Has anyone tried jasmine or passion flower? These are 2 varieties that appear may fit the bill quite well....

I'm based in Manchester, UK so we have cold winters (doesn't go below -5 degrees C) and summers are mixed....

On 10/01/2012 21:17, Biglarry wrote:
OK thanks for the advice guys. I fancy the idea of vines and might pull
up the flagstones, would a large flower pot not suffice then? Has anyone
tried jasmine or passion flower? These are 2 varieties that appear may
fit the bill quite well....

I'm based in Manchester, UK so we have cold winters (doesn't go below -5
degrees C) and summers are mixed...

You mean wet and very wet? ;-)

You haven't said which way the front of your house faces. If it's
north, you will be pretty limited in your choice. If it's south or
west, you are much better off.

Passion flower, if it is happy, will grow like mad. If your soil is
fertile, you will get lots of leaf and very little flower. Remember too
that no plants will grip smooth steel - they may get up a few feet by
twining, but will then slide down.

Evergreens such as Trachelospermum jasminoides or Stauntonia hexaphylla
give good cover, with the benefit of small highly-scented white flowers.
They are both vigorous when established, but perhaps not so much as
Jasminum officinale. If you want something in flower when little else
is, Clematis cirrhosa balearica would be a good choice.

Lots of suggestions he
http://apps.rhs.org.uk/advicesearch/...e.aspx?PID=380

--

Jeff

On Jan 6, 5:25*pm, Biglarry
wrote:
Hi all. Long time reader, first time poster.....

I've got a question that I'm hoping the knowledgable people on this
forum may be able to help with...

At the front of my house I've got 2 steel pillars that support part of
the house that sticks out beyond the threshold of the rest of the house.
The pillars go into the ground surrounded by paving flags i.e. not into
soil or earth.

I'd like to effectively wrap large flower pots around the bottom of the
2 pillars, fill with soil/peat then plant some vines/flowers to grow up
the pillars and potentially up the house somewhat. Ideally the growth
needs to be dense to block out the steel, as I find the steel a bit of
an eyesore...

Can anyone see any problems with this idea or offer any advice on
vines/flowers? Or any general tips?

Thanks in advance!

Larry

--
Biglarry

Using flower pots around the pillars sounds like a good idea.