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Fast climbers for hiding ugly things
I need a fast-growing climbing plant with plenty of foiliage; something fairly cheap. I want to train ot onto some wires I will be stringing up. The idea is to hide a nearby road from view while I'm sitting in my favourite spot in the garden. I'm about 200 yds from the sea, and on the Douth Coast of England. I'm not an avid gardener, so low maintenance plants are preferred. Can anyone offer any suggestions? We only have minor garden centres nearby so please suggest something fairly common! At first I was thinking Russian Vine, but then I remember how out of control those things can get. Mind you, "the triffid" was great conversation-piece!! ;-) Al |
Quote:
Lannerman |
Fast climbers for hiding ugly things
On 19/04/2011 21:44, AL_n wrote:
I need a fast-growing climbing plant with plenty of foiliage; something fairly cheap. I want to train ot onto some wires I will be stringing up. The idea is to hide a nearby road from view while I'm sitting in my favourite spot in the garden. I'm about 200 yds from the sea, and on the Douth Coast of England. I'm not an avid gardener, so low maintenance plants are preferred. Fast growing and low maintenance are almost always mutually exclusive. You might get away with something like perrennial sweet pea if you don't mind it being bare in mid-winter. Annuals like peas and beans are another option for quick climbers. Can anyone offer any suggestions? We only have minor garden centres nearby so please suggest something fairly common! At first I was thinking Russian Vine, but then I remember how out of control those things can get. Mind you, "the triffid" was great conversation-piece!! ;-) Don't forget that if it grows tall very quickly then it will very probably keep on going skywards way past the height that you want it and that will entail significant annual maintenance. Regards, Martin Brown |
Fast climbers for hiding ugly things
On 20/04/2011 15:00, Sacha wrote:
On 2011-04-19 21:44:27 +0100, "AL_n" said: I need a fast-growing climbing plant with plenty of foiliage; something fairly cheap. I want to train ot onto some wires I will be stringing up. The idea is to hide a nearby road from view while I'm sitting in my favourite spot in the garden. I'm about 200 yds from the sea, and on the Douth Coast of England. I'm not an avid gardener, so low maintenance plants are preferred. Can anyone offer any suggestions? We only have minor garden centres nearby so please suggest something fairly common! At first I was thinking Russian Vine, but then I remember how out of control those things can get. Mind you, "the triffid" was great conversation-piece!! ;-) Al Holboellias which are fast growing, evergreen, sweetly scented in early spring and hardy. They won't do it all in one season, though! However, once they get going, they're vigorous and will need to be chopped back once a year in autumn to the level you require. I wouldn't touch Russian Vine with a bargepole unless you're trying to cover a very very large area that is otherwise totally barren and have no neighbours. Yes, Holboellia sounds ok - I was going to suggest Trachelospermum. But what is their resistance to salt spray like? In fact, I would guess that salt spray could be a major problem with many fast-growing evergreens that can be used further inland (eg some Clematis, Lonicera, and even Passiflora caerulea). There is also a possible problem with high winds ripping climbers off - even the best would suffer in a south-westerly gale! -- Jeff |
Fast climbers for hiding ugly things
Sacha wrote in :
We're not near the sea but our outdoor Holboellia gets plenty of cold winds chucked at it and comes through it. It looked a bit battered after last winter but still hung on in there. But if the OP is in doubt about climbers making it through the wind or salty air, he may prefer to grow a hedge of e.g. Griselinia which is very salt tolerant or Elaeagnus ebbingei. Unfortunatelky a hedge is not possible. I need the climber to cover a wire grid extending 39 inches above a 5ft wall. Southwesterly gales do haoppen here, but usually in winter. I don;t really need the screened privacy in winter, so if it gets a bit blown away, it'll be ok as long as it grows back in spring. One side of it will face due South. The lower mortion of the plant will be in the shade. Hope that won't cause a problem. Thanks to the other respondees. Al |
Fast climbers for hiding ugly things
"Jeff Layman" wrote in message ... On 20/04/2011 15:00, Sacha wrote: On 2011-04-19 21:44:27 +0100, "AL_n" said: I need a fast-growing climbing plant with plenty of foiliage; something fairly cheap. I want to train ot onto some wires I will be stringing up. The idea is to hide a nearby road from view while I'm sitting in my favourite spot in the garden. I'm about 200 yds from the sea, and on the Douth Coast of England. I'm not an avid gardener, so low maintenance plants are preferred. Can anyone offer any suggestions? We only have minor garden centres nearby so please suggest something fairly common! At first I was thinking Russian Vine, but then I remember how out of control those things can get. Mind you, "the triffid" was great conversation-piece!! ;-) Al Holboellias which are fast growing, evergreen, sweetly scented in early spring and hardy. They won't do it all in one season, though! However, once they get going, they're vigorous and will need to be chopped back once a year in autumn to the level you require. I wouldn't touch Russian Vine with a bargepole unless you're trying to cover a very very large area that is otherwise totally barren and have no neighbours. Yes, Holboellia sounds ok - I was going to suggest Trachelospermum. But what is their resistance to salt spray like? In fact, I would guess that salt spray could be a major problem with many fast-growing evergreens that can be used further inland (eg some Clematis, Lonicera, and even Passiflora caerulea). There is also a possible problem with high winds ripping climbers off - even the best would suffer in a south-westerly gale! -- Jeff The ideal evergreen climber for windy coastal spots is Ercilla volubilis, can be grown right to the waters edge, gets huge mind so eventual maintenance required |
Fast climbers for hiding ugly things
"Charlie Pridham" wrote in news:91d7fmFtgvU1
@mid.individual.net: Ercilla volubilis Thanks for the suggestion. Both Ercilla volubilis and the Holboelia are non-existent at my local garden centres. The attandant at my local one suggested Honeysuckle (of which they have a selection). Would that do the job? Al |
Fast climbers for hiding ugly things
In article ,
Charlie Pridham wrote: Ordinary Lonicera periclymenum and all its garden forms are good near the coast but they are not evergreen, the evergreen sorts are OK provided they don't get dry roots or suffer from too much still air (they can go down with mildew) There are a number, these are the most often come across Lonicera henryi Lonicera similis delavayi and the commonest Lonicera japonica which has a number of forms but is the worst for mildew And is only evergreen in mild climates, like privet. Both drop their leaves if there is a hard frost, and neither suffer much from doing so. Regards, Nick Maclaren. |
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