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In the greater world of gardens (especially in garden centres) plants tend to be grouped for your enjoyment as herbaceous perennials, shrubs, & trees leaving one of the most useful categories nestling forgotten at the back of the plot, appearing as little more than a group of canes & labels. Of course I am referring to climbers… & when you do sort through the selection, then you are stuck with two dozen Clematis & a few roses, but there is so much more to peruse & choose from.
One of the issues with climbers is that the green sprig tied to a flimsy cane in the Garden Centre display hardly gives a decent preview of the all enveloping climber that will eventually overwhelm your house. A typical example of a commonly ill-advised purchase is the Russian Vine (Fallopia baldschuanica) which is the climbers equivalent of the hateful Leylandii conifer. This harmless looking creeper will take over your trellis, your garden, your immediate neighbours gardens, & your life. Do not buy one unless you have plenty of room & if you have recently bought one, take my advice & put it on the bonfire before it lives up to the other common name, ‘Mile-a-Minute’ I have seen on take off over a fence & generate complaints from the local football club on the other side as it was growing out over the pitch 20yds from said fence. Others to avoid are the magnificent & stately Wisteria, if you wish to avoid constant summer pruning, (only buy one if you have a manor house & a spare gardener to hand) & Golden Hops (Humulus lupulus ‘Aureus’). The hop is a fine plant if you are a Master Brewer growing for business reasons, but the description in the RHS Encyclopaedia of a ‘rhizomatous twining perennial’ tells you all you need to know about a plant that spreads like wildfire through the soil in your borders, clogs up your pergola, & dies back in the winter. It looks fabulous in summer though!
So what are the climbers to enliven your garden & entertain your sensibilities that are readily available if you look carefully.
Apart from the big blousy Clematis like ‘Nelly Moser’ & ‘Montana’ (which are fine but seem to be what everyone thinks of when they want a Clematis), there are a few that are late season specialists & grown through an old apple tree or along a blank piece of fence are more than worth the investment. Clematis florida ‘Sieboldii’ is an excellent fine leaved variety that won’t choke all around it. The flower is a well defined white & purple that really stands out. Others to look for are the ‘orange peel’ type of Clematis, orientalis, tangutica,& ‘Bill Mackenzie’ (though wandering around your local nursery asking for Bill Mackenzie might generate some odd looks). For early flower & scent you can’t beat Clematis armandii. On a sheltered wall in early March it is a welcome splash of the unusual.
A south facing wall or sheltered courtyard is an ideal spot for an exotic highlight.
Passion Flower (Passiflora caerula) has remarkable flowers that could come straight from Star Trek, whilst Actinidia deliciosa (improbably, the Kiwi Fruit) will thrive but not produce viable fruit.
Vines are becoming more & more popular, with fruiting varieties such as ‘Boskoop Glory’ producing decent grapes, but for me the architectural qualities are the best reasons to find room for the Vine. Dependant on variety, you can have fabulously large & well defined leaves, autumn colour & grapes (Vitis ‘Brant’), almost unbelievable autumn colour, (Vitis cognetiae) or deep purple leaves all summer (Vitis vinifera ‘Purpurea’).
Parthenocissus (or Boston Ivy) is a genus that has several notable species that will adhere to a wall rather than needing trellis or wires to gain a foothold. P. tricuspidata, P. quinquefolia, & P. henryana are all excellent buys with small vine like leaves & superb colour & coverage.
The real Ivy is a much underrated climber with the small leaved Hedera helix coming up trumps with the varieties ‘Parsley Crested’ & ‘Pedata’. To add some variegated splendour check out Hedera colchica ‘Sulphur Heart’ with sumptuous leaves & evergreen tendencies.
The problem is most people don’t get beyond the most basic of climbers, when there are enough species of genuine quality to keep a keen gardener on their toes with anticipation for season after season.
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