Check this out. Here is a link that might be useful: What we did with the chain link fence ...

I wouldn't mind having a better look at that wall before suggesting something with a lot of root mass, like daylilies or shrubs. There is not much lean on that wall and pressure from within is the last thing you want. I've been poking around my rock walls and garden lately and have noted how much root mass is tending to migrate to areas of consistent dampness. For example, I have a pot standing next to a plant that has a bulky root mass, and although the plant can grow best where there is light, the woody base has pushed itself under the pot. Quite intriguing. In your situation, this tendency is aggravated by the downhill slope, which is where water, and thus roots, will go. Therefore a plant that spreads by stolons would probably not grow uphill, but you may not want to risk it - so none of your Houttuynias or St. John's wort, for example. Something that mats, in contrast, could easily by mowed by the neighbour (or their mowing people). A couple of matting plants that I have had good success with are a spreading veronica (note to self and others: do NOT google "spreading veronica") and a matting dianthus with bright pink flowers. Not sure how they would handle full sun in your climate, but the moisture retention of the rock would help. I think the thymes would be OK too. Which way they spread would partly be determined by the sun - they would grow primarily toward it. I agree that the sedums are not as weed-suppressing as you might think. One that might be would be Sedum 'Angelique', and there are others. Sedum acre would probably also work - but as Yardvaark's description of how to root it suggests, it is rather easy to propagate and so your neighbour's mowing might get it all over her yard - so easy to miss a bit that falls. 'Angelique' will also root where it drops, but because it's bigger and not as fragile it is easier to control the bits. All ground covers need periodic haircuts to avoid getting leggy, woody, and sparse. KarinL

Everyone I know with a chain link fence covered by English Ivy had to literally sit out there for YEARS and weave the vines up and through the fence mesh, the plants won't do it on their own. In fact the vines constantly want to escape the fence and creep away on the ground or climb up into the trees - anything but be intricately woven into the chain link. The process took many many years since English Ivy pretty much sits still for at least the first year (and I've seen it sit still for up to three years in poor soil). Once it has adapted to its new home it can grow very fast but that rarely happens right after planting. The first step in keeping English Ivy from becoming the next Kudzu is to stop it from growing up the sides of tall buildings or tall trees. The vine we see is actually the juvenile form, which it can stay as forever. Once it climbs up around 25 feet the plant will switch to its adult form which is more like a woody stemmed shrub, its leaves will change shape and it will bloom and set seed. So if you see it being used as ground cover or climbing up a small fence it is not able to bloom or set seed in that stage. That is not the plant that we should be concerned with - it is harmless, though a rampant grower. As a garden plant, they will grow in spots that few other plants will survive and nothing seems to eat them so they have a place in my garden but I cut them back every other year to stop them from blooming.

How long a fence is it? Do you think your neighbor would mind (or notice) if you put a vine on it? Doesn't hurt to ask. If it's a really sturdy fence, wisteria might be nice. Even though it goes dormant, it still has a nice woody presence and will hide most of the fence once it grows up a bit. Even grapes could be useful here. If you don't mind losing a little space and want something softer than coniferous evergreens, there are some really wonderful clumping bamboos that can stay green all winter in your zone (check out Fargesia spp.). If you plant them close to the fence, they'll swallow it up and render it invisible. The landscaping forum can be helpful if you decide to go with plants.