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fast growing climbers
hi we are moving to a house that the main garden is at the side front of house and seperated from public pathway by a small wall. i would like to make this private as it will be our main garden, so was thinking of putting decorative trellises or fence work on wall and need some fast growing evergreen climbers , it is also a sunny spot can anyone help as i am new to gardening thankyou
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Hmm.. a difficult one as there are not many fast growing evergreens that I can think of which would give you a quick response. Avoid Russian Vine like the plague or else you'll be lost within a couple of years within it's tendrils.
Clematis armandii is evergreen and you'll get lovely scented flowers in spring but it won't tolerate windy sites. Clematis montana is very fast growing and smothered in pale pink flowers in spring but it's not evergreen. Unfortunately I lost mine this year to a very severe frost early spring. You could mix one of these with a rambling rose or a jasmine officinale or even an ivy. Ivy comes in all sorts and doesn't have to be just plain old green.
Photo of an Ivy living with an Elaeagnus (don't know which one) which has decided it might like to climb with the Ivy so I've left it, topped with a Campsis (not evergreen but late flowering). See my blank bit of arch where the Clematis was - boo hoo...
Photo of the other side of the two together. They get a fair amount of shade from an oak tree during the day but they seem to like it. I think just greens works well.
Then perhaps a Kiwi. Not evergreen but is very fast growing and if you had a male and female you could get the fruit too (although I only have one and get little fruits so I don't know how that works)
I used to have a Solanum crispum on a trellis years ago. It went mad but I had the space to let it roam. Some winters it kept most of its leaves and the blue flowers were lovely all summer long.
Lastly, good old honeysuckle. Again not evergreen - although I do believe there is an evergreen now (?) and when in flower - as mine is now - the scent in the evening is devine.
Sorry this is a long reply but I hope it has given you a few ideas and you'll get even more help and advice I'm sure.
Enjoy your new home - and garden.
How about euonymus? Not a climber, but evergreen and grows quite fast. Various colour combinations, such as green/gold, green/white, etc.
Akebia quinata and Trachelospermum are lovely climbers - they both do well in our garden
Pam x
http://www.bbc.co.uk/gardening/plants/plant_finder/plant_pages/4246.shtml
http://www.bbc.co.uk/gardening/plants/plant_finder/plant_pages/23.shtml
Clematis cirrhosa - 'freckles' and 'jingle bells' are evergreen and grow very quickly. I bought them as 2 inch seedlings at the beginning of last year and they are now romping upto 6ft high on trellis. Discribed as vigourous but not invasive, the first has white/marron flowers, the second - creamy/white.
Another one I bought last year - Solanum Glasnevin, keeps it's leaves over winter, might be semi evergreen though, you'd need to check, mine kept it's leaves last winter, grows very quickly, needs encouragement to bush out, I've been nipping it's shoots. Flowers May to September with tiny lilac flowers.
Lavatera Barnsley, mine kept it's leaves this year but again this could be semi evergreen, it was one I grew in a pot before planting out. Flowers June to September, with flowers that are white with a pink centre, I suspect very insect friendly.
I'd use pyracantha - in fact, I have! Its a dense, very hardy evergreen shrub with small leaves mainly used against walls or fences. You tie it in initially until it gets the jist and it supports itself after that. It has white flowers in early summer and bunches of berries in autumn. Good for security too, as old growth deeper in is thorny. I trim mine as a hedge annually to keep it tight to the fence/trellis and keep it to 8ft tall. Easy, as the new growth you're chopping is soft and not thorny. I grow eunonymous fortunei through it for its silvery or gold evergreen foliage, plus various small clematis (alpinas, macropetalas, early or late late large-flowered are ideal) for extra flower power. It will clothe right to ground level, or you can trim the trunks bare lower down and underplant. Red column is a good variety. I plant mine 4ft apart and they should grow pretty quickly - just bear in mind that anything super super fast won't stop when you want it to and you could well end up swamped and spending your life pruning. Also, if the sun is coming from the path side and you put up trellis and climbers, most of the flowers will appear on the sunny side! Yeah, I'd do fence, pyracantha, and clems (which will flower in some shade). Food for thought with all these different ideas anyway... Bx
wow thanks very much for all your replies, i have certainly got a few to think about now once again thanks much appreciated
Thanks very much. I had the same query. Pyracantha fits my bill perfectly.
Ah, just realised - it needs planting in a pot...is this possible?
Akebia and Lonicera are good suggestions but bear in mind most Honeysuckles are deciduous - the evergreen ones are Loniceras Henryi, Halliana and Giraldii.
Thanks both of you. I am just looking to make a 'wall' to separate a raised deck area and a patio area. There is a small fence at the moment. It would need to be fairly narrow. It would be in full sun morning to evening (lucky aren't I?). I still fancy berries - any comments about cotoneaster horizontalis, would it be ok in a pot and would it grow quickly? Thanks.