I’m in the south looking for a resilient vine to grow up a fence for extra privacy. I’ve had some jamine ivy for years and it was wonderful but it did not recover from the last hard freeze which is surprising.
Checking to see if anyone knows of better alternatives, maybe something that grows faster, covers more area and is more resilient? Or should I just stick with the same?
I have to say it worked pretty well but did take some time for it to really fill in.
I’ve thought about making this exact same topic, so I’ll be watching for replies. Last year I made a big fence of green beans, which was cool for getting beans, but it became a breeding ground for a few species of stink bugs. Turns out, stink bugs are horrible for weed. They attack the main stem, then everything above that point get sun burnt and crispy looking and grows weird no good smoke.
So thats my main thing. Insect resistant and fast growing. Green beans grow super fast, which was nice for filling in the view before the weed got big.
Previous occupants of my house didn’t get on with the neighbors so they planted bamboo. You have to watch that it doesn’t get out of control and spread everywhere, but it provides a substantial privacy barrier.
Get yourself a trumpet vine or two and don’t look back! They are beautiful, flower huge trumpet shaped flowers that bees, hummingbirds and butterflies love. My old place of residence I just moved from I was there for 16 years, after the first couple years I really wanted more privacy as the 6 foot fence just didn’t cut it. I bought 6 trumpet vines for like 14-150$ all in , big established ones too, planted them 6 feet apart at intervals on the three sides of fence. They grew monstrous and had over the fence 2-3-4 ft and eventually tied together making my backyard look absolutely amazing in the spring summer and fall and I’d watch the pollinators come daily making it even more great!
I think thats what my wife suggested. But I never believe things until I read them online. hehehe. I actually saw humming birds twice trying to feed out of tiny green bean flowers. So I’m sure they’d appreciate the upgrade
I had a wisteria on one corner of my back deck. It was gorgeous when it was in flower, but they take a lot of work. Vines grew so quickly and would wrap around everything. I had to hack it back every few days or it would take over my bbq grill. The deck was covered with slats like a pergola. The wisteria grew up the one corner and across all the slats, and those vivid purple flowers would hang down, making for a pleasant hang out space. IMO, beautiful, but not worth the hassle…
Fun coincidence - the link provided points to the Missouri Botanical Gardens which is located maybe 4 miles from that house I owned with the wisteria plant.
Morning Glories are surprisingly easy to grow, and they are quick to fill in a fence. Moonflowers are incredible, but they don’t really get going until late in the season (mid to late September in my area). The smell is heavenly, and the huge moths they attract are spectacular.
Autumn clematis is another one that is pretty bulletproof. I used to grow it up the side of my chicken and duck pen for shade, and it grew fast enough to outpace them constantly eating it. It smelled great when it was in bloom, but after a while the fragrance made me nauseous.
Confederate jasmine is another thing that might be worth considering. It’s hardy to zone 7 I believe.
Passiflora is also a host plant for the gorgeous Gulf Fritillary butterfly , which is a great reason to grow it. My biggest problem with it is that it can be a bit of a garden thug.
Virginia creeper. It gives a lovely fall foliage show. In Ok everything not covered in trumpet vine, Wisteria, or Virginia creeper, IS covered in poison ivy. Which gives a lovely rash.
