| Unfortunately, clinging vines have had a bad | | | | welcomed with a framework structure like an arbor. |
| connotation deriving from the age-old fairy tale about | | | | Arbors work best when covered with vines offering |
| Jack and the climbing beanstalk. But it is now time to | | | | periods of shade to plants below. Vines when grown |
| put that child's story away and discuss all the virtues | | | | on arbors can provide lovely doorways transitioning |
| of flowering vines and other attractive climbers and | | | | from one area of the landscape to another. |
| creepers. Flowering vines are used in landscape design | | | | Chain-link fences are hardly appealing on their own, |
| for both aesthetic and utilitarian purposes. The | | | | but when decorated with climbing flowering vines |
| versatility of flowering vines is truly impressive. A lot | | | | they can make quite a statement. They also can |
| of that versatility has to do with the fact that vines | | | | provide, in some cases, a form of a privacy screen |
| can either stay close to the ground functioning as | | | | sheltering your backyard activities from unwelcome |
| ground covers or climb and be used to decorate | | | | outside attention. Vines can be used to soften and |
| trellises, arbors, and fences. | | | | add interest to fences, walls and other hard spaces. |
| Being that many flowering vines attract | | | | Some vine plants can serve a utilitarian function as |
| hummingbirds, a characteristic that appeals to both | | | | ground covers for erosion control. Undesirable trees, |
| gardeners and bird watchers, whole garden | | | | posts, and poles can be transformed using vines to |
| landscapes are focused on this aspect now. Bird | | | | alter their form, texture and color. |
| watchers desirous of attracting hummingbirds with | | | | Vines can be separated into three basic types: |
| flowers dripping with nectar need not sacrifice | | | | clinging, twining, and sprawling. Clinging vines attach to |
| landscaping beauty. Climbing vines, to name one, the | | | | surfaces using specialized organs such as roots or |
| trumpet vine, adept at attracting our attention with | | | | tendrils. Twining vines climb by encircling upright |
| its bright orange color, is also considered among the | | | | vertical supports. They are often used on poles, |
| best to attract hummingbirds, hungry for the food | | | | vertical wires, or lattice structures. Most of these |
| that they bear. Magnifica Honeysuckle, a low creeper | | | | vines will spiral in only one direction characteristic of |
| vine with large scarlet flowers also attracts | | | | the species. Sprawling vines are basically shrubs that |
| hummingbirds. Many flowering vines are rich nectar | | | | produce long runners, but have no means of |
| sources for not only hummingbirds, but for butterflies | | | | attaching themselves to a support. So this type of |
| too. | | | | vine needs to be manually wound around a support |
| The vertical dimension is always an important | | | | or braced up in some way. They usually become |
| consideration in landscape design to add interest and | | | | woody and self-supporting with age. |
| variety. Vertical relief to flat horizontal spaces can be | | | | |