Climbing Plants Don't Always Have to Grow Up a Trellis – These 5 Unusual Ideas Make a Much Bigger Impact
Turn climbers into a botanical spectacle for your garden
Climbing plants add so much value to the garden, maximizing vertical space and adding dimension to patio planting. But, having a simple trellis to support your climbing blooms can look a little flat, which is why I've started exploring more unusual ways to grow climbers.
From training evergreen climbers into a roof for your pergola, to repurposing this Wayfair rustic ladder as a plant support, there are so many clever design tricks to turn climbers into living botanical spectacles for the yard. Really, you can use nearly anything as a structure to train climbers, so long as their built for the weight of plants and you have the right growing environment in place to support healthy growth.
So if you're bored of standard vertical garden ideas, keep reading. Here, I talk through five of our favorite unusual ways to grow climbers to instantly make your garden more interesting.
1. Train Climbers Up a Tree
If you're looking for a unique take on a natural support for climbing plants, why not train your vines up a tree?
This is the perfect addition to romantic cottage garden planting, especially if you choose a rambling rose (like the beautiful pink 'Super Dorothy' rose from Amazon) to climb a large tree.
It naturally integrates your planting, especially as the plants mature and increasingly coexist with each other.
To make this a success, you need to choose the right climber. Avoid any particularly vigorous plants that could overwhelm the host tree and outcompete it for nutrients.
You should also plant the climber at a sufficient distance to the tree, ideally around 3ft away. This ensures the tree's root system is protected and the climber is accessing its own nutrients and water.
You'll also want to select climbing plants for shade, as they'll be growing beneath a tree canopy. 'Rebecca' clematis (available at Plant Addicts) is also a good choice for this.
When tying in the climber, use soft jute twine (like this from Amazon). This looks subtle in color and won't cut into the tree or the plant.
2. Cover a Wall
While we often think of living walls being constructed of hanging wall pocket planters (like this from Amazon), you can also get the look with climbers alone.
More specifically, you can use self-clinging climbers to grow a little unruly and cover a wall.
The best approach is by using multiple plants for more coverage, planting 3-10ft apart, depending on how much big the space is.
You can use wire or put up a wall trellises (like this wall trellis panel from Wayfair) to help train them and support their weight. It's also wise to avoid vigorous climbers on weaker walls.
Just like training and tying in wisteria shoots, you should carefully train new shoots horizontally, rather than letting them grow upwards.
You can use the likes of star jasmine (available at Plant Addicts) and wisteria (like 'Blue Moon' wisteria from Plant Addicts) for a floral display, or use something like English ivy for evergreen coverage.
Take care to prune these wall climbers annually prevent them invading windows and gutters.
3. Create a Living Roof
Just like a living wall, you can create an impactful living roof above your outdoor seating. It provides some privacy and garden shade, while creating an immersive feel as you sit beneath.
For this, you'll need a pergola to form a support structure. Using wire rope (available on Amazon), you can train climbers up each post and across the top, like in the image above.
If your pergola is in a sunny spot, one of the best plants to use is a grape vine (see the collection at Nature Hills), adding an edible element to this spectacle.
Wisteria is also a popular choice for something like this, with the iconic racemes cascading downwards and even making your patio smell nice with its heady fragrance.
4. Bring a Sculpture to Life
One of the best ways to turn climbers into botanical art is by literally combining them with yard art.
You can use garden sculptures as frames for your climbers, allowing the vines to dress them and turn a stationary art piece into a dynamic display that changes with the seasons.
Self-clinging climbers, like ivy, are best for this look as they'll naturally climb and support themselves.
In many ways, this exudes formal-style garden or regency-style garden. It can also make garden features feel a bit more lived-in, as though the vines have found their way up the sculptures over may years.
Just remember to consider the material of your sculptures very carefully. You don't want to put any at risk of damage. Stone and metal tend to be reliable foundations, able to take the weight of vines, but you should always do research around your specific sculpture.
You can explore the wide range of fascinating garden sculptures at Wayfair to find the right fir for your garden.
This spectacle will also need regular pruning to maintain the desired look, otherwise you risk the climbers completely taking over the sculpture to the point that you can't see it. Use these lightweight Fiskars loppers from Amazon for quick maintenance.
5. Let Them Cascade
Many of the best climbers can also be grown as trailers, and can be used to create a cascading display, rather than an growing upright.
Without supports to climb, some climbers naturally produce long, arching stems that spill over walls and containers. This includes climbing roses, creeping fig (which you can purchase in a pack of six from Amazon), and potato vine.
A small support at the base can help young plants establish, but once the stems reach the edge of the container or wall, simply let gravity turn them into a waterfall of foliage and blooms.
Keep on top of pruning to maintain the desired length of your trailers (these Felco F2 pruning shears from Amazon are good to have to hand). Light trimming also encourages branching, helping to create a fuller, denser display.
What to Shop
This metal garden arch can be used to train climbers and create a beautiful arching display. It includes netting for vines to climb up.
These Felco F2 pruning shears are made for lifetime use, with easily replaceable parts. They're lightweight and strong, with aluminium handles.
This planter is 18" wide, perfect for compact climbers when paired with a trellis or obelisk. It has a beautiful ribbed design with a patina color.
There really is a climber for every garden, whether you're looking for easy climbing plants that thrive of neglect or easy climbing plants for pots to grow on a small patio. There are also plenty of invasive climbers to never grow that are good to be aware of.
If you love inspiring garden ideas, outdoor advice, and the latest news, why not sign up for our newsletter and get the latest features delivered straight to your inbox?
