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Climber advice

FlyDragonFlyDragon Posts: 834
edited May 2020 in Plants
I've realised my garden is a bit purple dominated at the moment. 

My spring flowering Camellias and azaleas have finished or are on their way out, and I'm left with two purpley Clematis, purple Alliums and a purple rhododendron.  Until the roses and the annuals flower I'm a bit monotone!

I do have a spare trellis but I have been a bit reluctant to put anything there yet as I'm hoping to do some landscaping within the next few years that would mean digging it up.  Either that or putting it in a big pot for now rather than the ground and then pruning it back to base when I do the landscaping and hoping for the best! 

So...can anybody recommend a climber for me that:

  • Has flowers that aren't purple
  • Flowers around mid-May to July
  • Can live in a pot
  • Can cover an area on a garage wall about 2m square
  • Can be pruned back hard in a few years and still come back
  • Is ideally evergreen 

Or... is cheap enough and easy enough to grow that it won't be too upsetting if it has to be sacrificed for the landscaping later on!


Thank you for any suggestions!
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Posts

  • FairygirlFairygirl Posts: 55,117
    Loads of clematis would suit,especially Group 2s or some of the macropetalas etc.
    Not so many are evergreen though, and those that are tend to need more sheltered conditions. Take a look at Taylor's, Thorncroft and Hawthornes for ideas.
    They won't instantly cover that area though - not many things will though.  :)

    I have Miss Bateman, which I know can be grown in a pot with the right care. It has purple anthers too, which picks up on your purple theme. I also have a lot of purple. 
    It's a place where beautiful isn't enough of a word....



    I live in west central Scotland - not where that photo is...
  • FlyDragonFlyDragon Posts: 834
    Thanks Fairygirl, I realise it won't cover that area in a hurry but that's the end goal! 

    Could a group 2 clematis be cut right back and survive?  I have a Nelly moser growing in a big deep pot on the other side of the wall but I'd pretty much resigned myself to losing it when I start renovating. 

    I know the group 3s can but I don't think they can get big enough!

    I'll have a look at Miss Bateman.  I do like purple, its just a lot of it at the moment!  I have very unsubtle taste when it come to flower colour, the more colours the better all crammed in together!  My rose patch would make some people scream in horror  :D


  • FlyDragonFlyDragon Posts: 834
    Ooh the Miss Bateman is lovely, might be just the thing, although now I want two! 
  • FlyDragonFlyDragon Posts: 834
    I might get a Miss Bateman and a Liberty, and never mind about being evergreen I've got the camellias for that!

    Thanks so much fairygirl!
  • lily6lily6 Posts: 79
    How about looking at Jasminoides Tracleospermum. Over the years we have successfully moved 3 in our garden, evergreen and beautifully scented. 
  • FlyDragonFlyDragon Posts: 834
    edited May 2020
    How did you go about moving them?  The evergreen is because I let my dad put up this trellis using no more nails and bless him its a bit messy!  

  • FlyDragonFlyDragon Posts: 834
    Hmm, with the potential to grown 8m x 8m I'd worry it'd be a bit hard to control into a much smaller space, have you found that lily6?
  • FairygirlFairygirl Posts: 55,117
    You can treat G 2s like Group 3s no problem, they'll just flower a bit later  :)
    Mine is in a raised bed. I have a macropetala in the neighbouring one, which flowers at around the same time. 
    The pale green stripes on the emerging Miss B is a good link with the lemony flowers of the macropetala. 



    It's a place where beautiful isn't enough of a word....



    I live in west central Scotland - not where that photo is...
  • FlyDragonFlyDragon Posts: 834
    It is lovely, I think I will have to go with clematis over the jasmine, I do love a big unsubtle flower! 

    I may have to stage an accident with the trellis so I can put it back up myself...
  • FairygirlFairygirl Posts: 55,117
    edited May 2020
    FlyDragon said:


    I may have to stage an accident with the trellis so I can put it back up myself...
     :D 

    Those jasmines aren't reliably hardy everywhere - certainly not here, so it depends on your conditions and climate for them too. They're lovely, but they can be tricky if they don't have the right spot. 
    It's a place where beautiful isn't enough of a word....



    I live in west central Scotland - not where that photo is...
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