Growing Vining Plants

Hi everybody and welcome! Every week I get tons of e-mails often these e-mails give me ideas for topics to include in my column. One topic that I have received several e-mails on is the use of care of plants that are used as vines. First of all let me emphasize that if you train your plants to grow directly on your house or fence, the plant will damage your wood. Since your wood is a porous material, the small roots of the plants dig into the pores and this allows moisture to enter the tiny holes. In addition, the plant it self produces it’s own moisture and consequently the wood never has a chance to dry out. The end result will be wood rot and fungus. Over time, this will badly damage your wood siding or fencing. If you use pressure treated wood, the process will take a lot longer then on un-treated wood. The best way to present your trailing plants is to build or buy a ready made trellis or other suitable structure for the plant to climb on. If you choose to do it yourself, a simple trellis can be made from wood strips attached together with brads or small screws. You can then either paint your project or even use a conventional red wood stain for a real classy look.

Ok, you have your structure built and you know where you want to put your plants now you need to decide what plants you want to use. There are many types and varieties to choose from but I am going to mention one of my favorites first.

Mandevilla vines are a great colorful choice for your garden and they also make a great backdrop if you are using them to grow up a fence or arbor. Mandevilla plants grow best if they have partial sunshine or filtered sun through the branches of a tree. They thrive best in a rich well-drained soil with organic substances such as manure added to the mixture. You can increase the bushiness of the plant by pinching back some of the new growth as the plant begins to climb. One of the biggest problems you may encounter with a Mandevilla is aphids. Aphids are microscopic insects that tend to cluster around the flowers and also on the new growth. They do their damage when they suck the juices out of the plant and the plant starts to starve for nutrients. These pests can be controlled by using a systemic insecticide such as Orthene or Orthenex. Mandevilla do not tolerate severe cold and need to be protected or covered if temperatures fall below 45 degrees.

Passionflowers are another colorful choice you can use for your trellis. These plants are fairly easy to grow and will do well in partial or full sun. They will do best in a well-drained soil but they should not be allowed to get too dry as the leaves will then begin to turn brown at the tips. The plant produces a small oval berry that can be eaten but it is extremely seedy. The fruit is often used to make jelly. The plant is also an excellent butterfly attractant. Passionflowers can also be successfully grown in containers but it is sugge3stted that container plants not be put in direct sun but rather have a filtered light source.

Another plant that I have personally experimented with are Morning Glories. Although these plants will probably not be readily available, you can easily plant them from seed. Since these plants do not like to be transplanted, you should sow the seeds where you are going to permanently keep the plants. Prior to planting, you should soak the seeds overnight in room temperature water in order to soften the hulls and get a better rate of germination. You can plant the seeds in partial to full sun but should be in well-drained soil in order to induce good flower production. It should be noted that Passion Flower is an annual and that although the original plants will get “tired” that new plants will be generated from the seeds of the old flowers as time goes on. One feature of these plants is that they grow very fast and although mine did not flower profusely, the flowers I did get were well worth the wait.

That’s all for this week and I hope you found the content interesting and informative. I will see you again next week with more great garden tips.