Lil - since no one has responded, I can tell you that I use Concord grape that I purchased at either Lowe's or Home Depot, don't recall which. They probably have the best bargains on grape vine. There is one that is supposed to be absolutely beautiful in fall, with red foliage, though. I'll see if I can find it. Is your pergola in full sun, or what exposure?

I would bet the wisteria will take it over, though.

Susan

Thanks for your response, Susan, but now I think I'm going to use Clematis terniflora for this pergola. It is in full sun, and the white mass of flowers this clematis produces should look nice on the china red structure.
Lil

We have a grape vine growing on a trellis (nothing fancy such as a pergola) which was added to the west side of the house long before we bought it. The first year or two we lived here, we just let it go as it would grow--wow--a lot of grape vine covering an area of about 60 sq. feet. It provided great shade, nice over the kitchen window, but it also produced quite a mess! The grapes produced were abundant and the birds had a wonderful time. The vine was way out of hand though, so this year, we pruned it way back. We replaced the old wooden slats that were mostly falling apart from the weight of the vine by using vinyl lattice placed over the 2 x 4's attached to the house. The vine has grown back, produced more grapes, providing nice shade again and also the mess. Ah, well, the birds seem to like those grapes. I don't intend to become a winemaker either. The base trunk of that grape vine is about 8-10 inches around too. For a pergola, I'd go with the clematis. I have an autumn clematis that would work great for such a structure.

Bertha

My question is will Autumn Clematis (ternifolia) take full sun? I've always grown mine in part to full shade. I was also going to suggest porcelain vine (ampelopsis brevipedunculata) which is in the vitis family. While the blooms are insignificant on it, the foliage is cream and green, and in autumn it produces berries that are blue, purple, cream, and hence, the common name, porcelain vine. It is a fast growing vine once established, but not near as overwhelming as the grape vine.

Susan

Bertha, what type of grape do you have? Are they table grapes or wine grapes? Sounds wonderful, except for the mess! I know you must have very happy birds. :-)
Susan, yes the C. terniflora is recommended for either full sun or partial shade, so I'm hoping it will thrive in this location. It actually does get some morning shade, too.
Lil