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Best vine for chain link fence

17 years ago

Hi everyone,

I've been wanting a thick covering fast growing fine for the ugly chain fence separating my yard and my neighbors. I've been looking into Boston Ivy, Dutchmans Pipe and Virgnia Creeper. The area gets partial shade. I'm thinking VC might be too invasive. Any other suggestions? Are any of the 3 adequate for the fence? Thanks!

Jen

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Comments (5)

jenny_in_se_pa
17 years ago
The very nature of a vine is to grow as much as possible and all can become "invasive" after awhile unless vigorously controlled.

The 3 you mention will grow to cover the fence but you'd have to keep after them as they can also crawl along the ground and get into any nearby trees or shrubs.

You may want to consider clematis - perhaps mixing types to get blooms from spring through summer. Some of the type 3s can grow quite strongly but can then be cut back to a couple pairs of buds each year. The type 1s & 2s can form a woody trunk that would remain in place to resprout new growth.
onesherri
17 years ago
I would also recommend clematis. I have jackmanii planted all along my fence line with others mixed in but none of them compare to the coverage of the jackmanii. Each one that I have planted covers a whole section of fence.
Believe it or not there is some fence under all of that.:)
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Sometimes the best way to hide an eyesore is to distract from it with something really beautiful to look at elsewhere. Trying to hide something may only serve to call attention to it. Are you happy with the rest of your back garden? Focus on making it an attractive and useful area. A black chain link fence will tend to visually disappear into the neighbor's planned landscaping -- depending on what is planted, of course. Perhaps all that is needed is some patience? A photo would reveal more of the story.
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How wide and deep can it be? If you can sacrifice ten feet, you have lots of great choices of reasonably priced, maintenance-free drought tolerant and flowering shrubs. The farther into your yard the plant can jut the fewer plants you will need to buy. If you want something that grows no more than three feet into your yard you will have to spend a lot of money and your choices will be quite limited, and the maintenance may be high. The only evergreen vine I would recommend is trachelospermum jasminoides (sp?) or star jasmine, but it can get burned in full sun and it can freeze. I have Algerian ivy, and I do not recommend it to anyone who wants a life beyond trimming ivy. My dad is currently planting Iceberg roses against his five foot tall chain link fence, and he will plant nandinas on the other side. Expensive, but low-maintenance and pretty. He only has 60 feet to cover. Renee
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I live in south Orange County. I have a Clematis montana "Grandiflora" that is encouraged to ramble up a pine tree. It is one of my favorite vines! Beautiful 3-4" white flowers cover it for several months in the spring. Not a hint of mildew on the leaves, unlike some other clematis I've grown. Very quick growing and pest free. I pruned it heavily after flowering, and it is almost as large as it was before the whack. BUT, as stated above, vines on chain link fences are a maintenance challange. I'd avoid the trumpet vine, jasmine and silver lace vine as those all like to grow top-heavy. The star jasmine has tough stems; I've heard tales of it being very difficult to free it from the chain link because it requires a lot of pruning and unwinding to free it. (My skin reacts to star jasmine sap, so I avoid growing it. Therefore, not much first-hand with this one). Have you considered an espallier? I'd recommend something like lavender starflower. It is a tough, easy-to-grow shrub that looks good year-round. The leaves are an attractive green and the flowers are a hit with butterflies and hummingbirds. The stems branch in a flat pattern, making it a natural for espaliers. Quick growing once it gets started. An espalier would be less maintenance that a vine. This post was edited by Gyr_Falcon on Mon, Sep 9, 13 at 15:45
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in mild winters , mine keeps most of it leaves. The discrepancy might be in the character of the winters in Texas compared to PNW. We have much milder weather most of the time and the BANG we get a huge 60 degree drop in a day and then mild again. Usually we will have 3 of these cold fronts. This year we had one. I swam many times in January in the neighboring river. It started to loose some leaves in January briefly around that realy strong cold front and then was actively growing again soon after. You guys get cold and stay coldish for awhile. More time to loose more leaves. We , in Texas, are in a PNW summer right now.. Have been for awhile. Tomatoes are ripening.
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jenny_in_se_pa
17 years ago
Sherri - those are beautiful and exactly illustrate the possibilities!!!
kabby_z8
17 years ago
I am almost in the same boat. I am going to cut down some exhausted climbing roses and these are growing on hog wire. It would be impossible to pull down dead growth every yr. So the type 1 and 2 clematis wold be a good bet for this area? Can you give some more examples of these 2 types?
And Sherri that IS a gorgeous picture!
I'm also looking for suggestions for other vines that bloom on old wood, full sun, zone 8a. Thanks!
katrina1
17 years ago
onesherii, what a great look for your fence! I do wonder though what they look like once they drop their leaves and go dormant in the winter.

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