Can anyone suggest two attractive evergreen plants for along a fence?
See the following pictu
http://s246.photobucket.com/albums/g...eedofcover.jpg

The position is south-facing and gets full sun - and, in winter, full
frost!

Along the road (as shown in blue) I'ld like to plant some
natural-looking evergreen groundcover.

To tumble from all along the top of the fence another natural-looking
evergreen is needed, preferably NOT aubrietia - which we already have
enough of elsewhere.

Thanks.

Eddy.

On Thu, 06 Mar 2008 17:46:55 GMT, Eddy
wrote:


Can anyone suggest two attractive evergreen plants for along a fence?
See the following pictu
http://s246.photobucket.com/albums/g...eedofcover.jpg

The position is south-facing and gets full sun - and, in winter, full
frost!

Along the road (as shown in blue) I'ld like to plant some
natural-looking evergreen groundcover.

To tumble from all along the top of the fence another natural-looking
evergreen is needed, preferably NOT aubrietia - which we already have
enough of elsewhere.

I would suggest trying a clematis armandii, which is evergreen, grows
fast and can be trained along the fence. You could try growing a
clematis montana, which also grows fast but is not fully evergreen but
the two could be allowed to grow together.
For ground cover I would try periwinkle (vinca). There are small
leaved ones which spread but stay low and have either blue/mauve or
white flowers, and there's a variegated one which spreads but can be
cut back each. It has nice blue/purple flowers.

Pam in Bristol

Pam Moore wrote:
I would suggest trying a clematis armandii, which is evergreen, grows
fast and can be trained along the fence. You could try growing a
clematis montana, which also grows fast but is not fully evergreen but
the two could be allowed to grow together.
For ground cover I would try periwinkle (vinca). There are small
leaved ones which spread but stay low and have either blue/mauve or
white flowers, and there's a variegated one which spreads but can be
cut back each. It has nice blue/purple flowers.

Thanks, Pam. Yes, periwinkle seems to be listed as being suitable for
shade OR full sun. Somewhere I read something that suggested that vinca
minor would be better than vinca major. Can't remember why.

Eddy.

On 7/3/08 11:24, in article , "Eddy"
wrote:

Pam Moore wrote:
I would suggest trying a clematis armandii, which is evergreen, grows
fast and can be trained along the fence. You could try growing a
clematis montana, which also grows fast but is not fully evergreen but
the two could be allowed to grow together.
For ground cover I would try periwinkle (vinca). There are small
leaved ones which spread but stay low and have either blue/mauve or
white flowers, and there's a variegated one which spreads but can be
cut back each. It has nice blue/purple flowers.

Thanks, Pam. Yes, periwinkle seems to be listed as being suitable for
shade OR full sun. Somewhere I read something that suggested that vinca
minor would be better than vinca major. Can't remember why.

Eddy.

Invasiveness, perhaps? There's a *very* pretty Vinca minor called V. Azurea
Flore Pleno with a pretty double flower. I like V. oxyloba too. But for
ground cover, I would very, very strongly suggest Geranium Jolly Bee. This
is a true geranium, not a pelargonium. It has intensely blue flowers and
goes on and on for a very long time. We have some on a bank just outside
the gate and it has spread and covered a large area quite quickly. On the
whole it's better than G. Johnson's Blue, IMO. But Vinca while useful, will
take over and cover everything else, so I wouldn't recommend the two
together. What would look good with the G. Jolly Bee, coming over the edge
of the fenced area, would be Rosa The Fairy. I've seen it described as clump
forming but ours seems to grow in arching sprays which would look very
pretty growing down a wall or bank. There must be other roses that would
look good doing that and so would the perennial sweet pea, Lathyrus
latifolius (unscented though)
--
Sacha
http://www.hillhousenursery.co.uk
South Devon
'We do not inherit the earth from our ancestors, we borrow it from our
children.'

Sacha wrote:
There's a *very* pretty Vinca minor called V. Azurea
Flore Pleno with a pretty double flower. I like V. oxyloba too. But for
ground cover, I would very, very strongly suggest Geranium Jolly Bee. This
is a true geranium, not a pelargonium. It has intensely blue flowers and
goes on and on for a very long time. We have some on a bank just outside
the gate and it has spread and covered a large area quite quickly. On the
whole it's better than G. Johnson's Blue, IMO. But Vinca while useful, will
take over and cover everything else, so I wouldn't recommend the two
together. What would look good with the G. Jolly Bee, coming over the edge
of the fenced area, would be Rosa The Fairy. I've seen it described as clump
forming but ours seems to grow in arching sprays which would look very
pretty growing down a wall or bank. There must be other roses that would
look good doing that and so would the perennial sweet pea, Lathyrus
latifolius (unscented though)

Sacha, thanks a lot for these very good suggestions. Have googled
images of the lot. The double-flower of that vinca is attractive. The
Geranium looks really natural. Thanks too for alerting me to the
"everlasting pea" - I always thought sweetpeas had to be replanted
annually!

Eddy.

Pam Moore wrote:
On Thu, 06 Mar 2008 17:46:55 GMT, Eddy
wrote:


Can anyone suggest two attractive evergreen plants for along a fence?
See the following pictu
http://s246.photobucket.com/albums/g...eedofcover.jpg

The position is south-facing and gets full sun - and, in winter, full
frost!

Along the road (as shown in blue) I'ld like to plant some
natural-looking evergreen groundcover.

To tumble from all along the top of the fence another natural-looking
evergreen is needed, preferably NOT aubrietia - which we already have
enough of elsewhere.

I would suggest trying a clematis armandii, which is evergreen, grows
fast and can be trained along the fence.

The OP said that the fence gets full frost in winter. I wouldn't chance C.
armandii in that position. And if it did survive, it would cover the whole
fence, the ground, the next field, and half the county in a few years. But
I'm not cutting mine down - it looks fabulous at the moment.

You could try growing a
clematis montana, which also grows fast but is not fully evergreen but
the two could be allowed to grow together.

See above warning - goes double for C. montana.

It would be useful to know the soil type and approximately where in the
country these plants are required.

--
Jeff
(cut "thetape" to reply)

In article ,
"Jeff Layman" writes:
|
| The OP said that the fence gets full frost in winter. I wouldn't chance C.
| armandii in that position. And if it did survive, it would cover the whole
| fence, the ground, the next field, and half the county in a few years. But
| I'm not cutting mine down - it looks fabulous at the moment.

It's reasonably tough, and can be kept under control. I have one in
a space far too small for it, and that's a problem - but 10 yards of
fence should be OK.


Regards,
Nick Maclaren.

Jeff Layman wrote:
It would be useful to know the soil type and approximately where in the
country these plants are required.

Thanks, Jeff. Acid soil, west Shropshire on the Welsh border.

Eddy.

On 7/3/08 14:13, in article , "Nick
Maclaren" wrote:


In article ,
"Jeff Layman" writes:
|
| The OP said that the fence gets full frost in winter. I wouldn't chance C.
| armandii in that position. And if it did survive, it would cover the whole
| fence, the ground, the next field, and half the county in a few years. But
| I'm not cutting mine down - it looks fabulous at the moment.

It's reasonably tough, and can be kept under control. I have one in
a space far too small for it, and that's a problem - but 10 yards of
fence should be OK.


Regards,
Nick Maclaren.

Actually, how about good old Holboellia going down as well as up and along?
--
Sacha
http://www.hillhousenursery.co.uk
South Devon
'We do not inherit the earth from our ancestors, we borrow it from our
children.'

In article ,
Sacha writes:
| In article ,
| "Jeff Layman" writes:
| |
| | The OP said that the fence gets full frost in winter. I wouldn't chance C.
| | armandii in that position. And if it did survive, it would cover the whole
| | fence, the ground, the next field, and half the county in a few years. But
| | I'm not cutting mine down - it looks fabulous at the moment.
|
| It's reasonably tough, and can be kept under control. I have one in
| a space far too small for it, and that's a problem - but 10 yards of
| fence should be OK.
|
| Actually, how about good old Holboellia going down as well as up and along?

It depends on how much early spring frost. C. Armandii is more likely
to flower if its buds get frosted - at least with me. But it would
cover the fence with no problem, in any case.


Regards,
Nick Maclaren.

On 7/3/08 15:34, in article , "Nick
Maclaren" wrote:


In article ,
Sacha writes:
| In article ,
| "Jeff Layman" writes:
| |
| | The OP said that the fence gets full frost in winter. I wouldn't
chance C.
| | armandii in that position. And if it did survive, it would cover the
whole
| | fence, the ground, the next field, and half the county in a few years.
But
| | I'm not cutting mine down - it looks fabulous at the moment.
|
| It's reasonably tough, and can be kept under control. I have one in
| a space far too small for it, and that's a problem - but 10 yards of
| fence should be OK.
|
| Actually, how about good old Holboellia going down as well as up and along?

It depends on how much early spring frost. C. Armandii is more likely
to flower if its buds get frosted - at least with me. But it would
cover the fence with no problem, in any case.


Regards,
Nick Maclaren.



Eddy is in Shropshire. I have little idea of the winters there but they
were bitter at my school in Worcestershire!
--
Sacha
http://www.hillhousenursery.co.uk
South Devon
'We do not inherit the earth from our ancestors, we borrow it from our
children.'

Sacha wrote:
Eddy is in Shropshire. I have little idea of the winters there but they
were bitter at my school in Worcestershire!

About 425m above sea level. An inch of snow two days ago. Lots of
frosts. Ice on narrow hill roads can be a problem (best to keep to
longer flat routes!)

Eddy

Eddy wrote:
Jeff Layman wrote:
It would be useful to know the soil type and approximately where in
the country these plants are required.

Thanks, Jeff. Acid soil, west Shropshire on the Welsh border.

Eddy.

Well, at least with acid soil you've got a good choice. Maybe I'm wrong,
but doesn't Shropshire occasionally get some of the coldest temperatures in
the UK? Do you know what the lowest temps you've had over the past 3 or 4
years?

The suggestions so far (Clematis, Vinca, Holboellia) are climbers or
scramblers. Looking at your picture, I am not sure why we've all only
mentioned these. As you've got acid soil, what about various Rhodos? As
long as you have acid soil, and choose any of the evergreen ones, you could
go from dwarf to medium size, depending on how much cover you want.

If they'll stand the cold, what about Ceanothus (particularly impressus or
thyrsiflorus)? There are various Sarcococca that would also fit the bill.
An added bonus would be scented flowers in winter.

If shrubs aren't what you want, and you are in a very cold winter area, then
I seem to remember a thread on hardy evergreen climbers a few months ago
(try Google groups for this newsgroup). I think the conclusion was that
only Hedera would stand most situations, and even that might suffer with a
severe frost.

--
Jeff
(cut "thetape" to reply)

Jeff Layman wrote:
Thanks, Jeff. Acid soil, west Shropshire on the Welsh border.
Well, at least with acid soil you've got a good choice. Maybe I'm wrong,
but doesn't Shropshire occasionally get some of the coldest temperatures in
the UK? Do you know what the lowest temps you've had over the past 3 or 4
years?

Been here 8 months only & we've had perhaps 6 or 7 nights, here and
there, of -5 or -6 in the last two months.

The suggestions so far (Clematis, Vinca, Holboellia) are climbers or
scramblers. Looking at your picture, I am not sure why we've all only
mentioned these. As you've got acid soil, what about various Rhodos? As
long as you have acid soil, and choose any of the evergreen ones, you could
go from dwarf to medium size, depending on how much cover you want.

Well, I'm certainly to consider rhodos on the other side of the fence,
but on the side in the photo there are only two planting strips. One is
the long channel about 4" wide between the fence and the weatherboard
barrier beneath it, dry, riddled with roots of the hedge on the other
side of the fence, so best used for tumbling things like aubreitia -
except that we've got enough of that elsewhere. The other strip, at the
base of the weatherboard barrier, is actually council property, i.e.
it's the verge between our land and the tarmac of the road, so something
natural would be best in there. (When we arrived it was all thistles
and nettles.)

If they'll stand the cold, what about Ceanothus (particularly impressus or
thyrsiflorus)? There are various Sarcococca that would also fit the bill.
An added bonus would be scented flowers in winter.

Ceanothus: a big big and bushy for the two strips above. Sarcococca
hookeriana looks like it could be a good natural-looking evergreen
groundcover for the roadside strip - except that likes shade.

If shrubs aren't what you want, and you are in a very cold winter area, then
I seem to remember a thread on hardy evergreen climbers a few months ago
(try Google groups for this newsgroup). I think the conclusion was that
only Hedera would stand most situations, and even that might suffer with a
severe frost.

Indeed! Hedera would be fine provided it didn't start clasping itself
to the weatherboard barrier and creeping upwards. . . is there a
sub-species that can resist the temptation? :-)

Eddy.

On 7/3/08 16:44, in article , "Eddy"
wrote:

Sacha wrote:
Eddy is in Shropshire. I have little idea of the winters there but they
were bitter at my school in Worcestershire!

About 425m above sea level. An inch of snow two days ago. Lots of
frosts. Ice on narrow hill roads can be a problem (best to keep to
longer flat routes!)

Eddy

Then I think you must check all suggestions you receive for suitability for
your garden. Some years ago I lived in a Devon village where I could get
away with most - not all - tender things, while the other end of the village
could get ice and frost that lasted for days!
The Holboellia would probably not be happy with you.

--
Sacha
http://www.hillhousenursery.co.uk
South Devon
'We do not inherit the earth from our ancestors, we borrow it from our
children.'