Planting climbers for trellis - which planting angle?
Hi everyone,
When I've planted climbers recently (for he first time) I've made sure the planting hole is 45cm away from the wall/trellis. I've then angled the plant back towards the trellis so that the canes that came in the pot with the plant are angled towards the trellis, as I thought this was how it was supposed to be done. The end result is that the plant leans backwards.
However, I've come across this webpage with an illustration which suggests that the plant and rootball should be kept upright:
http://www.raymondevisonclematis.com/main/guidesOverAnArch.asp
Does this mean I've done it in the wrong way and it will it affect the plants? The plants at this stage are now attaching to the trellis (clematis and honeysuckle).
My other query is that we are planning to use an archway type trellis to screen off compost bins. This area will be mostly in the shade. If I was to plant something like a Honeysuckle Graham Thomas at the West side of this archway, is it the type of plant that will climb up and right over the other side of the archway, or would I need another plant on the East side (which would be complete shade)?
Thanks for any help and advice you can give,
Lucid 
Posts
You've planted the climbers against the wall in the right way
Planting away from the base of the wall and angling the plant towards it helps keep the roots out of the dry area of rain shadow cast by the wall.
The link illustrates planting a clematis to climb up a trellis arch - the arch will not cast a rain shadow as a wall does, so the rootball doesn't need to be as far away.
Check out the prevailing wind and the direction the rain comes from most often - if the climbers are going to be in the lee of the trellis and consequently in a dry spot then I'd plant them away from the base of the trellis and slope them towards it.
Graham Thomas is my favourite honeysuckle - mine has been in bloom for three months now - but it won't grow downwards
It's best to plant a climber on each side of the arch. My Lon. Graham Thomas is growing in almost complete shade on a north-facing fence under a large tree and is happy. Other climbers suitable for shady spots are some of the clematis - take a look here http://www.taylorsclematis.co.uk/
Gardening in Central Norfolk on improved gritty moraine over chalk ... free-draining.
Thanks for your very helpful reply Dovefromabove. I'm still learning and sure I will be for quite a long time!
I think we'll probably go with 2 of the Graham Thomas Honeysuckles then for this particular arch. I like the idea of having something that's beneficial to the wildlife, that blooms for a long time and looks nice too - the 3 main things I'm trying to incorporate in to our garden design.
Lucid
Gardening in Central Norfolk on improved gritty moraine over chalk ... free-draining.