How to Determine What Kinds of Vines to Grow

So you’ve decided to decorate your yard with outdoor vines. Great! The first step is choosing which ones to grow. You’ll make a better decision if you can determine the type of vine that best fits your needs.

Don’t Fall for Pretty Flowers!

Tempting as it may be to choose your vines based on their flower production, tying your decision only to appearances can lead to problems. The right vine can become a focal point in the garden for years to come, so it’s essential to choose based on its growing characteristics as much as how it looks.

Here are some of the details you need to pay attention to:

  • the vine’s hardiness zone
  • annual growth
  • pruning needs
  • natural climbing ability (will it attach to the support structure on its own, or will you need to tie it in place?)
  • average lifespan
  • space requirements
  • sun/shade needs

Once you’ve paid attention to these factors, you can consider the cosmetic details like leaf and flower floor, interesting growth structure, and more. Taking time to figure out the basic requirements first ensures you’ll stick with varieties that are best suited for your space.

What about Invasive or Aggressive Vines?

By nature, many vines are aggressive growers. In fact, it’s often less an issue that gardeners can’t get their plants established and more that they will start to overtake the growing space.

Many popular vines, including wisteria and trumpet vine, can grow multiple feet in a short amount of time and will readily spread into natural areas or other parts of your yard and start to choke out what else is present. It’s not uncommon for these fast growers to take down full-grown trees!

Always research your chosen vine variety before planting to ensure you have the space to manage it. Make sure you have a sturdy trellising system to support the vine’s weight as it grows. You may also want to keep vines in containers so they can’t spread throughout the surrounding ground.

Remember: If a vine is starting to get out of control, it’s always possible to prune it back to ground level. Hardy perennials will have well-established root systems and will quickly rebound from the pruning.