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Hydrangea seemannii

KitBMillerKitBMiller Posts: 33
in Plants
I'm after some advice please:  I have a big garage wall at the rear of my garden and I want to put a climber in to cover it up.  The garage does not belong to me, so I want a self clinging climber as I have nothing to attach a trellis to and don't want the expense / bother of cementing in posts for trellis.  The soil is neutral heavy clay and the spot is full to part sun.  Its south west facing in a sheltered position. After a lot of research probably the best plant would be hydrangea seemanni which is self clinging and has the benefit of being evergreen- but they are poisonous to cats and I'm a bit wary of having one with a cat (even though she is not one that will try and eat the plants).  The other option I was considering is a campsis radicans, but some of the sites say it needs full sun so I'm not sure it would get quite enough.  I'm wondering if I tried a fast growing honeysuckle and initially propped it up with some bamboo canes if it would take hold on the wall?  A semi evergreen one maybe which might also have some wildlife benefit.  The other thing is I don't want it to come too far out from the wall as its a narrow area and I want to fit a small wildlife pond in front of it.  Advice gratefully received.  Thanks

Posts

  • PalustrisPalustris Posts: 4,307
    Never grown that particular Hydrangea, but we have had H. anomala ssp. petiolaris which is very similar. We have had cats for the last 40 years and never had any problems with any of the Hydrangeas.
  • KitBMillerKitBMiller Posts: 33
    Hi, thank you both - I feel a lot better now and think I will commit to a hydrangea. How far out from the wall do they grow please?  thanks
  • DovefromaboveDovefromabove Posts: 88,147
    The stems that cling to the wall stay close, but its the sideshoots that carry the blooms, and these will
    stick out some  18” or more … if you remove them you’ll have no blooms. 


    Gardening in Central Norfolk on improved gritty moraine over chalk ... free-draining.





  • FairygirlFairygirl Posts: 55,117
    The garage doesn't belong to you though. That's the starting point. You need a separate support or the owner's permission.
    I had a similar situation here as the neighbouring garage forms part of my boundary with the boundary fence already there. I wouldn't have dreamt of planting anything directly against it. I erected a short run of fence to add my climbers  :)
    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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