Vines

If you need some fast solutions for some simple problems, look to vines. Whether you need a living screen, or you want to cover a trellis or arbor, or you need some temporary shade, or you simply want to add some color to a stark wall, annual vines have much to offer. They are among the most rewarding plants in the garden, giving you a wonderful display in one season, and taking up little room in the garden. And unlike their perennial or evergreen counterparts, they won’t need pruning, and they won’t become invasive.

Vines add a vertical dimension to make small spaces seem larger, and they provide privacy and cooling shade. Most annual vines won't cling to a brick or wooden wall, like their more permanent counterparts, but you can use such climbing aids such as wire fences or trellises to support them.

Many of our annual vines are actually old-fashioned plants. Most old home sites used vines which clambered up the side of the house, or clothed a trellis in foliage and flowers, or turned a sunny porch into a cool, leafy retreat. Why not choose these carefree plants to soften your landscape. They are easy to grow, use a minimum amount of ground space, and are pest free all season long.

Annual vines are easy to grow in flower beds, hanging baskets, window boxes or trellised planters. They transform unattractive areas, and provide a quick and inexpensive solution to many landscape problems. By using annual vines you can vary the plants you are using and your color scheme every year. While some annual vines will reseed themselves every year, for others you have may want to save your own seeds or buy new plants. Most of them are heat lovers and will not kick in and grow until the soil and air temperature warms up. Even though they may be slow to get started, they thrive all summer long, right up until frost. And since they are "annuals" they only last one season.

There are numerous annual vines to consider. Many nurseries now offer not only the seed, but small plants as well. Check your local garden center or nursery to see what is available. Cypress vine and cardinal vine are closely related members of the morning glory family. They both have outstanding crimson flowers which are attractive to hummingbirds. The cypress vine is Ipomoea quamoclit and has very delicate fern like foliage. It can grow ten feet or more in height and has delicate star shaped blossoms. It does best in full sun to partial shade. Cardinal vine, Ipomoea x multifida has a slightly larger, more funnel shaped flower, almost like a miniature morning glory but in bright red, it has a wider leaf blade than the cypress vine. It will also grow at least 10 feet tall. It does best in full sun.

Don’t overlook the common morning glory, Ipomoea purpurea. While it may be a weed in some fields, there are numerous varieties and colors to choose from, and they have extremely showy flowers. Colors include the true blues, pinks, whites, lavenders and magenta, as well as two tone flowers. They have large heart shaped foliage and the flower size can vary from as small as two inches up to 5 inches. Full sun to partial shade is best, with this vigorous vine. Some varieties may reseed freely, so learn to recognize it. It is considered one of the most reliable bloomers, unless the soil it too rich.

Another member of the morning glory family that has become a popular vine is the moonflower, Ipomoea alba. Unlike other morning glories which open early in the day and are often closed by evenings, moonflowers don’t begin their show until evening. As if to emulate the summer moon, these six inch white flowers open every evening at sunset. Not only are they beautiful flowers, but they are fragrant to boot. If you can find a plant, buy it. They can still be started from seed now, but it takes at least twelve weeks or more for the plants to begin blooming. Full sun to partial shade.

And don’t forget the ornamental sweet potato vines, which are also in the morning glory family, Ipomoea batatas. While they are a true sweet potato, they are grown for their attractive foliage rather than their production ability. While they can produce a tuberous root that is edible, it is not highly rated, and rarely eaten. From the dark purple ‘Blackie’ variety to the chartreuse leafed variety ‘Margarete’ and a newer variegated foliage plant called ‘Tricolor’, these vines rarely, if ever flower, but they produce copious amounts of leaves which can spread up to 12 feet or more. These ornamental types were discovered in the Philippines in the early 1980's.

And lest you think all annual vines are morning glories, there are some other highly prized plants. Hyacinth bean is an old-fashioned vine, making a big comeback. Hyacinth bean, Dolichos lablab, is a fast growing member of the pea family with large purplish tinted leaves with dark purple stems. If this weren’t attractive enough, by mid-summer it is covered in deep lavender pea-like flowers. These long lasting blooms, are then transformed into glossy purple four inch seedpods, which are every bit as pretty as the blooms. It will grow up to 15 feet in a season. Uncooked beans and flowers are poisonous. Full sun to partial shade.

Two other members of the bean family are the runner beans: scarlet runner and Jack and the Beanstalk. The Scarlet runner bean, Phaseolus coccineus produces large vines with attractive scarlet flowers that also attract hummingbirds. You can eat the flowers, pods and seeds of this versatile bean. Jack and the Beanstalk, Phaseolus multiflorus is another edible runner bean. This prolific vine can grow 20 feet or more and has beautiful white flowers followed by edible beans.

If you want to have a utilitarian vine, you can also grow gourds. From luffa’s to the bottle gourds, many of these make large vines with showy yellow or white flowers, followed by the hanging gourds themselves.

Another old-fashioned annual vine is the black-eyed Susan vine or clock vine, Thunbergia alata. Flowers may be orange, yellow or white, with or without a black center or "eye". The common name clock vine comes from the fact that the vine will twist around its support in a clockwise motion. These vines can be grown in a hanging basket, or it can climb a trellis, six to eight feet in a season. Partial shade is best, and this is not a drought tolerant plant, so be prepared to water.

Hops, Humulus lupulus, is another fast growing vine that is legendary for its inclusion in beer brewing. It is grown more often for its ability to quickly cover a trellis or arbor and provide summer shade. It has sand paper like leaves and aggressive tendrils that twine at will. A herbaceous plant, it dies to the ground in the winter, and may return in late spring to sprint upward its 15 to 30 feet summertime growth. After it dies back, getting it off an intricate structure can be tricky, so keep it your staking or trellising simple. By the way, it is the flowers that are used in beer. Actually it is the bracts and while both male and female Hops make flowers, only the ripened cones of the females are used to brew.

There are other annuals vines on the market. Asarina, commonly called creeping gloxinia, is a member of the snapdragon family. This vine is native to Mexico where it reaches great heights. It should grow at least ten feet tall, and blooms best in the sun. Flower color varies from shades of pink to purple. Cobaea scandens, or the Cup and Saucer Vine produces interesting flowers that start out as green papery buds and open to reveal the green saucer and bell-shaped flowers. They start off white, changing to deep purple before falling off. This sun-lover can grow twenty feet or more.

There are a few newer plant introductions that are actually tropical plants, that can serve as summer annuals. Mandevilla, the fast growing pink flowering vine, blooms its heart out all summer long with flowers ranging in shades of white to light pink to a dark hot pink. Allemande is a yellow flowered vining plant. There are also several clereodendron’s that will spread some and give you outstanding color all summer long.

Whatever the intended use or location, there's an annual vine to suit your situation. For most, it is plant them now, then stand back and let them grow.