Very excited - seeking advice!

I'm so excited! My very well documented hedge, a source of much distress to us when our nrighbour cut it down in height, has now been removed. It took my husband, my brother and two strapping teenagers all of Saturday to remove, cut back and dig out. The offending neighbour has moved out and while the house is being sold by the landlord and therefore empty we siezed the opportunity.

And now, my fantastic six foot (with an additional foot of trellis) closed board fence is nearly completed. WAHOO!!! I've even supplied the fencers with cakes from the bakery because I'm so completely thrilled. I will post a before and after pic this afternoon.

So I now have an extra three foot of garden width, and, I'm thinking shadey border. It won't get sun until about 2 for an hour at most. A few questions. The bed will be north west facing, the sun will be shaded out by the fence.

Will Montana grow in the shade to reach the trellis? And roses that would do the same?

Are there any climbing roses that will start in the shade and then reach the sun against the house and be trained along the brickwork?

Any suggestions for shade tolerating flowers?

Sorry for the list. I'm really excited and can't wait to plan the new area.

 

I love the chocolate vine Marley, thank you. I've just looked it up. Do you think I'd need to protect it in winter?

I am glad a Montana will like it, they really are lovely.

 

II'm keeping an eye on it and the entire side is now in full sun, not sure how long it'll be for. Does that mean I am looking for plants which like partial shade?

 

Just a few more suggestion for shade/semi-shade tolerant flowers; for low growing, Pulmonaria or Brunnera; for something a bit larger with flowers and foliage try Viburnum tinus or Fatsia japonica.

 

The chocolate vine is a wonderful plant, I planted one about 5 years ago in my mum's garden it's stunning; although vigorous it's easily kept in check by pruning off unwanted growth. She's frosts to almost -20 over the last two winters and it's come back as strong as ever.

Actindia kolomikta is another possibilty; although often said to need full sun I have succesfully grown one in a large pot up a wall that only recieves a few hours sun in the morning and it thrived with plenty of the pink and white colouring on the leaves which it is grown for...

 

I'm completely sold on the chocolate vine. Now I'll need to locate a decent sized one.

I wondered whether hardy fuchsias might be well suited? I love pulmanaria so will go for some more of that too, saw a lovely blue and white version at Wisley.

 

I'm pleased for you Victoria How about a Hop Vine ?

 

Thought I'd have a go at planting some Fuchsias in the ground this year, instead of in pots and losing them to the frosts. They are going in front of a north facing fence, so won't be getting much sun at all. My late brother had a couple of 20 year old Magellanica Alba bushes which grew to about 6', and they didn't get any sun. So i'm going to give them a go, along with Dollar Princess, Brutus, Hawkshead and Angel's Teardrops. I quite like the look of Rose of Castille Improved, so might add that to the list, if I haven't left it too late!

Cheers.

 

Some info on the Chocolate vine

Common Name: Chocolate vine
Genus: Akebia
Species: quinata
Skill Level: Experienced
Exposure: Full sun, Partial shade
Hardiness: Hardy
Soil type: Well-drained/light, Dry, Moist
Height: 1000cm

 

Hi. I'm new here, but wanted to add that we are about to plant a Chocolate vine (Akebia quinta) on a very large trellis that was supposed to support a jasmine. Unfortunately, whoever planted the jasmine decades ago never bothered to maintain it.

We are considering combining the Akebia qui. with a Clematis Armandii due to the shear expanse of the wall trellis, but still not certain how that might work. Are you going to combine any other climber or spreading varieties with the Akebia? Best of luck to you, VP and congrats on winning this gardening battle!

 

...only downside to Akebia quinata, (I love them) is the fact that they can suffer frost damage to the flowers in colder areas.

 

Thanks bonkers!

I do plan to put a few climbers on. I've bought a Morning Jewel Rose to climb up o e section, and I would like a couple of clematis but I think I'm going to go for group three clem. that needs cutting back each year to a foot or so. Otherwise I think it'll head gor the top and bloom through the trellis into next fours garden facing the sun. Also I want to maintain the fence well and it'll give me the chance to paint the fence.

The chocolate vine I think will be planted against the house in the corner where the fence joins. Should be a bit more protected there with the heat of the house.

 

Hello there VP

It's really exciting to have a new area to plant up, isn't it? Unfortunately I usually end up overdoing and buying enough stuff to fill a park, instead of a border in a small garden.

One clematis I really love is Viticella 'Etoile Violette', which produces masses and masses of purple flowers over a long period. The flowers are smaller and perhaps less showy than some other types, but it makes up for this by the sheer quantity of blooms. Also, it doesn't suffer from the dreaded clematis wilt, which seems to be a particular problem in my garden. You can cut it hard back each year, although I tend not to do this, because I have more than my fair share of snails and I find it just makes it easier for them to get at the new leaves.