If you look at photos of Tuscany, in the narrow streets of the towns they will have lush growth of star jasmine growing in big pots beside their doorways. And, that plant will grow to cover many high places. I absolutely LOVE the way they use it around their homes. It is I think trachelospermum jasminoides? Something like that anyway. And it is evergreen in that climate, and in mine as well--meaning 8B Alabama. I think shading the pot would be a good idea, even though the plant upper parts can take a lot of sun. Cluster other pots around it. No, I do not think your redwood planter boxes would be the proper containers for this plant. Ideally, put it in the ground and leave it alone. It will bloom magnificently in April and May here, and you can plant another vine like clematis to grow up its strong body seasonally. In my case, after returning home from a stay in the Tuscan area of Italy, I was inspired by what I saw there. I've now planted the star jasmine along a 100 foot length of chain link fencing to let it become a blooming and scented privacy screen. It will take maybe two years for it to reach the top of this 7 foot tall fence, but not long after that it will fill in. I know very well how vigorous it becomes, because one plant put into the ground about 4 years ago has formed a dense fat column (maybe 4 foot in diameter) around a 4x4 post in my front yard. The star jasmine is as far as my experience tells, pest free, can take heat and dryness if in the ground and established, and does not harm any brick or wood because it does not attach to anything. I just potted up a good sized plant for my brother to use on his upper deck in Louisiana, where it will grow along the railing facing the street for privacy soon enough. I'm a true fan of this plant, which can be turned into a hedge covering a small fence if you like, or left to its own devices if you want something growing with abandon. It smells wonderful when in bloom, great around a patio. Here is a picture of the first ones I put in the ground at MoccasinLanding, my old home: And then here is one photo of the plant in Italy, as a hedge on low fencing around a swimming pool. It is also the plant which covers the pergola in the background: And then here is the plant used in a large deep pot climbing up a building in Italy also: Your redwood boxes could be used this way to front the pots: This is an ordinary nandina domestica in the sort of pot I'm thinking to use for your jasmine. It has little clay feet to keep it up for good drainage as you see: This rose sort of espaliered to the stone wall of the villa has only a small open planting hole in the paving for its roots, however that works. Again, star jasmine covers this otherwise plain wall: This area of Italy has a lot of clay, terra cotta if you will, and I believe this is where the mother lode of Italian terra cotta pots and earthen ware artwork originates. So I'd suggest you get a good sized (big) terra cotta pot for your vine, whatever you choose to plant. It might be possible to put something else for a vertical look, like an Italian cypress, which is tall and skinny and evergreen. Hope this gives you some ideas.

I think painting the boards has already helped :) I agree with the masses about the planter not being right for the pool. However, I think you can change it's volume with plants for this year (and let the pool be the big cost for now). I've got some similar planters. I've gardened before, but not in this climate. So I'm going to suggest the two part process I used. See what's in the stores, writing down the names of plants you like. Then check the Sunset garden book, to see what it says. Then make lots of purchases of relataivly cheap plants -- nothing too large and pricy. Do try to coordinate the plants -- if some want lots of water and some don't plant them in groups a different ends of the planters, or in different planters. (I called this two part, but really, I keep going back and forth). I've found in the past that "full sun" can mean drastically different things for different plants, so I've only planted things that I won't be too upset to lose, and I'm seeing who does best (with the sun at my house and how much I'm willing to water, etc). You could also try some thing like Scarlet runner beans or Sweet peas along the fence. I *think* they will grow up the fence and break the visual line without needing trellis, and they grow quickly but just in the summer. You'll probably be better off getting plants locally, you can get them a little bit bigger. You could try doing a seach on the web - there's an organizations that small nurseries belong to... I think.

Molewacker, We definitely are keeping the redwoods. I love those big beautiful trees and they are part of the reason why we bought the house. In the living room we have these large, beautiful custom windows that overlook these emerald beauties along with the pool and water fountain. We actually have 4 giant redwoods in our backyard (there's two on the left side of the yard) and all of our neighbors have redwoods everywhere too. I know they aren't ideal for residential landscape but they're here and we love them so we're going to keep them unless they start to die for some reason. Then we'd have them removed right away because those things are huge and we don't want them to fall.

It sounds like you have a great opportunity to create a beautiful and low-maintenance landscape behind your pool wall! There are a variety of evergreen plants that thrive in full sun and require minimal pruning. One option is to consider using a combination of shrubs and ornamental grasses. Some examples of evergreen shrubs that could work well in your space are the compact varieties of holly, boxwood, or juniper. Pairing them with tall grasses like feather reed grass or blue oat grass can add texture and interest to the space while still keeping maintenance low. Another option is to consider using vines or climbers to grow up the pool wall. This can create a lush and natural look while still allowing you to utilize the space around the pool. Some evergreen vines to consider are English ivy or Carolina jasmine.