Mighty Fine Vines

When it comes to sheer growing power, vines either save the garden or take it over if you let them. One of the most rampant growing roses is Lady Banks, a yellow rose (figure B). In just five years it's grown from a small one-gallon pot to about 40 feet tall!

Vines can be rambunctious ramblers and no matter where you live, you can find a variety of vine to suit your growing conditions. The Chinese wisteria is a long-lived vine where it's hardy (USDA Zones (4)5 to 9). This particular plant (figure C) is 70-plus years old, and it will grow as high as the tree or structure that it's growing on.

But don't discount the value of fast and furious annual vines (figure D, E and F). For the most part, annual vines give you the same kind of prolific flowering that non-vining annuals do.

Vines generally prefer well-drained soil. Water well when planting. Weston trains his climbing rose to a trellis by loosely tying heavier branches with stretchy garden tape (figure I). "You don't want to tie them too tightly," he warns. As the plant grows, you may need additional ties to fill the structure in.

Some rampant growers like Lady Banks, trumpet vines and wisteria go wild if you don't work at trying to contain them. The time to prune is right after the spring blooms have faded. "There's not a whole lot that you can do to hurt an established vine, so a liberal pruning on these tough customers will help contain growth," says James. It lightens the load for the structure underneath and gives plants like the Lady Banks rose new bounce and vigor.

Upwardly mobile gardens are adding a whole new dimension to yards across the county (figure O). When it comes to vibrant, versatile vines, the sky is the limit!