I have passion flower for abt. 4 yrs now, overwinters indoors. It also grows really well for me, and I have taken cuttings & rooted them number of times. It also blooms all the time, no dormancy here! I keep it outside in appropriate weather. I have 3 small thunberghias that I grew from cuttings also (just this summer). They were only about 4-5" when all of them had flowers too. I don't have photo. I believe they will grow as well as passion vine. Why would you want kudzu or english ivy? They both can be very vigorous (should I say invasive?) - but I don't really know if they will grow well inside. I am not sure but think that kudzu is really 'bad guy' - you should check it out. You can always try something like petunia, morning glory, cardinal climber (I had this one outside, it is vigorous) or potato vine or even Malabar spinach (this one is edible too) from seeds, but really don't know how well they would do inside. I have grown Plectranthus too (have only few small cuttings now), it has nice flowers. One supposed to look out for mealybugs, spider mites and scale on it - I have been lucky & didn't have any - so far! Some succulents have trailing habit (maybe I should say 'hanging'? - they look good in hanging baskets) - Burro's tail, string of pearls, holiday cacti comes to mind. Rina This post was edited by rina_ on Mon, Nov 25, 13 at 8:57

I have a baby butterfly bush which will be planted on the other side of the house in the Fall, so the bees and such won't be in my way. lol. We have two huge pink crepe myrtle that are taller than the house. We have way too many wild sunflowers here. I'm sick of them. lol. Cosmos are definitely on my list! The other plants mentioned I've never heard of except Verbena. When I worked in a greenhouse years ago I remember planting many of their seeds. I'll look them up. Here's a picture of the Crepe Myrtle from last year, they're getting ready to bloom again.

My favorite fragrant house plant is a small shrub, Murraya paniculata, which has a great orange blossum fragrance and it is apt to bloom several times a year. If you have a window that gets sunlight, it is what I recomend. It would do best if you did put it out for the summer (in a semi-shaded spot) but that is true of most house plants. Do you have any idea why the jasmine did not thrive? Perhaps too much sun or too little time for it to make the adjustment to outdoor conditions? Understanding what went wrong would help alot with your next plant. Wishing you great success --- Jerry

Neo, since you're in Fremont, there's a huge range of California native shade-loving plants. Unlike the rest of the country, we don't get summer rain, so the so-called "drought tolerant" ferns of other locations may not survive here at all. For ferns, definitely get some Polystichum munitum (Western Sword Fern, common in nurseries here, but not the box stores). It doesn't need any summer water, but will look better if you give it some. It creates a beautiful 3-4 ft clump. The Polypodium californica (California polypody) is a pretty rhimozatic fern that pops up when the winter rains begin and goes dormant and disappears in June. It takes NO summer water at all, so shouldn't be used where you might water. Also, Acanthus mollis (Bears Breeches) take a good amount of shade and bloom in spring. No summer water needed, but they will stay green if you do water. (Back east, this plant is on a different growth cycle--here it is winter-growing) Aquilegia formosa (native California columbine) will grow in shade and requires very little water. Dicentra formosa (native California bleeding heart) likes shade and you don't need to water. It blooms heavily and spreads. For taller plants, the Ribes sanguineum (native Flowering Currant) is good. Nice pale green foliage, spring bloom, and no summer water. There are two native California heucheras (Heuchera maxima and Heuchera pilosissima) that perform beautifully in shade (even under oak trees) and don't need supplemental water). One blooms in white and the other in red. A nice bloomer is the native California Salvia spathacea (sage). It clumps nicely and blooms in red. No summer water needed. Finally, Thalictrum fendleri var polycarpum is a very airy, ferny like native plant that thrives in shade with very little summer water. It gets about 3 ft tall. There are many choices out there, but unfortunately, many box store plant departments here carry stuff that's better suited to places where it rains in summer. David