I Need Suggestions For Vine To Climb An Arbor And…
Carol Asked
I need suggestions for vine to climb an arbor and stay nice looking through the winter (will I need two for an arbor?), something noninvasive and nontoxic, and
hopefully fast growing to hide an ugly meter box.
The Gardener’s Answer
Hi, Carol in Kentucky: Utility meters are eyesores but essential for modern conveniences, so we live with them but try to hide them. Just make sure that if someone needs to get to the meter to read it that the arbor still allows for access. As for a vine that will climb and provide interest all year, there are a few possibilities depending on your light situation. There are a number of vines that will grow in the shade, but evergreen vines that prefer the shade limit the possibilities. If you truly have full shade, ivy would be a good choice. Although not evergreen, both Boston ivy and climbing hydrangea would be good options for shade vines. If you have more sun or filtered light in the space you are wanting to plant, then crossvine would be a good choice. It will tolerate low light as long as it gets some filtered light. This evergreen vine has trumpet-shaped, orange-yellow blooms. Tangerine Beauty is a good cultivar. Carolina Jessamine has similar shaped yellow flowers and is also evergreen. Both will flower better when planted in more direct light. Ivy is probably the fastest growers out of all of these, but once they get settled in their new home all vines will take off. The number of plants will depend on the size of your arbor but one plant will work for a small arbor. If the arbor is only big enough to hide the meter box then you definitely only need one plant.
