Cadence - Lucky you having a south/east baconly location. I am in the Okanagan, B.C. I am on a third floor condo too, but I face north east - which is alot more shady and leaves little choices but for shady plants. The first plant I thought of was the Honeysuckle They are valued for their pretty flowers, which are sweetly scented, and their decorative fruits, which birds find delectable. The climbing Honeysuckles are suitable for growing over a trellis, arch, or pergola, while the shrubby kind are great for growing in borders and rock gardens, and as hedges. Their trumpet-shaped flowers are borne from late winter or early spring to late summer and range in color from cream and light yellow to vivid scarlet and purplish-rose. They are followed by pretty fruits that may be white, yellow, orange, red, blue, and black. POTTING: These plants will live in almost any soil, though they prefer a moist loam enriched with organic matter. They will benefit from being mulched, except with manure, which promotes the growth of foliage at the expense of the flowers. Their roots should be in shade and most prefer part or even full shade, although some flower best with their heads in full sun. This should be perfect on your balcany if you can have the root base protected from the sun. The stems of young plants should be shortened to encourage early branching and produce a full, bushy plant. Once this is achieved, pruning should only be done to keep the plants in bounds and to thin them out once there is a lot of old wood. This pruning should be done right after flowering; Honeysuckles that flower in late summer should be pruned in early spring. Shrubby Honeysuckles should have their old flowering shoots thinned out and cut back to within a few inches of the old wood right after flowering. Another little [annual] plant I thought of for filling bare spots in containers and also for their fabulous scent is alyssum. The tiny white flower variety seems more hardy than the maulve/purple/blue - just my humble opinion. These tiny florals love sun or partial shade. They multiply fast, so fill in is quick! If you plant them near your sitting area, the fragance is so pleasant....

Maybe something deciduous, so you get more light in winter and less in summer. Depends on how dull winter conditions are there, maybe you instead want some shade most of the time. Since it is pretty open there and the house is one story high, the shadow from the house might not limit the planting choice to those not bothered by hours of shadow. Just about any full sun tree or shrub may do, as long as it has the desired structural characteristics and is suited to your climate and soil conditions.

This box is open at the bottom, 3 foot tall, and 2 feet wide. Please not the trellis on top, that I want to transplant the sweet pea on, or get some Wisteria for, when that potato vine dies. I need the plant to be ~25 feet, and relatively care free, but if there is something I can not go without, I will work for it. Sugestions so far are 1)Japanese maple from a landscaper, 2)a tree with very fragrant flowers, waverly dark green leaves, evergreen, hard nut like round berries after bloom, that are slightly less than a centimeter in diameter, and white flowers. can be trained as hedge like wall. 3) I am thinking of a small eucalyptus, due to the low maintenance. I know a Japanese maple would look great, but it is deciduous as far as I can see. Any knowledge on that? The angle of the picture does not show how the balcony inhabitants look right into my kitchen and dining area. So putting the tree in the right hand facing corner of the box, near the cherry tree, is the spot for it. Image link:

Thank you all for your input! Hubby and I are leaning towards the parthenocissus for the majority of the wall planted somewhere near the right (front) end. But I'm not sure which species would do well in my climate zone and in these conditions where the sun would be on that section for the entire day. Mine is fine with sun hitting it the entire day. If the leaves look scorched, water a bit more. Avoid P. quinquefolia (Viginia creeper) because it is too rampant. Named varieties of other species will be more tame. Expect a year or two to establish a good root system before the plant really takes off, but you should get some coverage the first year. Also, if those sticky suckers flake off, will the plant be at risk of falling off the wall? No. If some bit of the plant accidentally gets pulled off the wall, just cut that part off because it won't re-attach. A new bit will grow and stick on its own. Also, I'd still like to do one bougainvillea on the opposite corner. Anyone have tips for pruning to keep it the shape I want? Use a hedge trimmer and just shear it close to the wall. Bougies bloom on new growth, so new growth = flowers, so cutting back = more flowers, not less (within reason). Do not trim a baby plant too much. Let it establish. I'd like to have it climb up the wall at the corner and then most trail across the top section of the wall. In this situation where it will be attaching itself to the wall, how can I help direct its growth since there's nothing to tie pieces to as one would if growing on a trellis. Bougies won't attach themselves. You will have to install some strong wires or a trellis and use them to attach. Would also appreciate help on choosing a bougainvillea veiety suitable to this location/climate. I'm hoping "Orange Ice" will work because I really love the colors. A non-red color will be much less rampant and would be a good choice. Check on performance for that particular variety in your area--have you seen one growing in your neighborhood that looks good? Plant bougies in June or July when the soil is warm and do not disturb the rootball. Baby bougies are easily killed because the roots are so frail and brittle and need warmth. Established bougies are nearly impossible to kill. For planting slit the planting pot up, place the pot in the planting hole and gently pull out the pieces of the pot, leaving the roots as undisturbed as you can. Should I purchase online or would local nursery be better to ensure getting plants that are best for my area? If you have a good quality garden center nearby, that should be fine. Neither genus is particularly rare or hard to find.