10 Best Climbing Plants for Shade [Buyer Guide]
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Every exquisite garden has one or two varieties of climbing plants. Yes, it takes a while to arrive at an exquisite garden right? But whatever is worth doing merits the fullest of attention, that is why having your eyes on creating a garden you would be most proud of should be a goal for you. One day, you will relax in your 3-seater garden swing or on your hammock stands in your garden, and there will be a sense of pride in your beautiful accomplishment. To achieve this goal, a climbing plant for shade is a must.
Adding climbing flowers to your garden elevates the complexity of your garden and creates a sort of depth that helps you enjoy the ambience of your garden better. One problem people have when growing wall climbers for shade is that they tend to have their wall climbers all over the place. Sometimes it looks and feels like their wall climbers are taking over their garden from them. You do not want that. To ensure that your wall climbers are not in a mess, make sure you trim your climbing plants frequently, pay attention to watering them, and while some plants for shaded areas require fertilisers to grow appropriately, others might not do so well with them. Take note of the necessity of growing the climbing plant of your choice. Finally, if you have questions as to if climbing plants can be planted indoors, or if it is necessary for you to have a trellis support your shade-loving climbers, then keep reading.
In this post once again, we would be offering 10 different climbing plants for shades for you to choose from. We would be identifying various things to note while picking a perfect climbing plant, including, features, pros, and cons. There is also a buyer’s guide section dealing with things you should keep in mind when picking a climbing plant, and answers would be given to a couple of frequently asked questions
Lot of 3 Mixed Clemantis Climbing Plants
The LOT OF 3 MIXED CLEMATIS CLIMBING PLANTS is a climbing plant that has three mixed plants in it. It is quite good for decorating and improving the look and feel of your garden. It is best to plant and grow them in autumn or spring. They grow quite fast but are not meant to be potted plants. They are deciduous and so might not be evergreen.
Key Features:
They are usually deciduous plants
3 mixed flowers
They grow fast.
Specification:
Brand
Clematis
Dimensions
35 cm x 30 cm x 19.99 cm
Weight
3 Kg
Product type
Plant
Pros
They grow fast
They are not difficult to maintain
They live for a long period of time.
Cons
They might be quite smaller than depicted in pictures.
Their maximum height might be quite limited.
Clematis 'Rouge Cardinal' Hardy Deciduous Climber Plant Garden Shrub
The Clematis ‘Rouge Cardinal’ Hardy Deciduous Climber Plant Garden Shrub is a fast-growing plant. It adorns itself with single deep crimson flowers. These flowers appear all over the vine during summer. This clematis can be said to bring out its beauty when grown alongside other plants, its colours become much more beautiful as it complements the beauty of the other plants around it. It is best grown on frames, trellises, walls, or fences. It requires moist and well-drained soil to grow well and requires shades and cool soil to survive.
Key Features:
It comes with a pot size of 9 cm
It has an ultimate height of about 2 to 4 m
It flowers bloom around Mid-summer into autumn
Specification:
Brand
GardenersDream
Colour
Crimson, Purple
Product type
Flowers
Plant height
20-30 cm
Pros
It is easy to plant and maintain
It comes with a free pot.
It adds beauty to your garden
Cons
Colours might vary
It requires a consistently cool base
Orange Azalea Japanese Evergreen Shrub Hardy Garden Plant
The Orange Azalea Japanese Evergreen Shrub Hardy Garden Plant is a beautifully coloured climbing plant. That has mid-green foliage and an orange flower. The Orange Azalea Japanese Evergreen Shrub Hardy Garden Plant is very attractive and it definitely adds a very bright colour to your garden. Its colour becomes more pronounced in spring through autumn. It requires moist and well-drained soil, and frequent watering with the change of season especially when there is a rise in temperature. The Orange Azalea Japanese Evergreen Shrub Hardy Garden Plant enjoys being grown under partial shade, it does not grow well under full sunlight.
Key Features:
It is Evergreen
Prefers partial shade to direct sunlight
Blooms between spring and autumn
Specification:
Brand
GardenersDream
Colour
Orange
Product type
Flowers
Plant height
20 to 30 cm
Pros
Easy to grow and maintain
It adds a bright pop to your garden
It is evergreen
Cons
Might not grow fully without a shade
It has a small size at arrival
Clematis 'Nelly Moser' Hardy Climber Plant
The Clematis Nelly Moser Hardy Climber Plant is a hardy deciduous climber with a growth ultimate height of 1 to 2 m and a spread of 0.5 to 1 m. It grows with mid-green foliage and has quite distinctive large single flowers with a unique blend of pink and white patterns. This Plant should be planted in moist, well-drained soil. It also prefers partial sun. Full sun may cause bleaching or fading of colour from the flower petals. Its expected blooming period is in the summer. It comes with a 9 cm pot, and the plant height is about 20 to 30 cm.
Key Features:
An ultimate height of 1 – 2 m
Multicoloured flower pattern
The plant height is about 20 to 30 cm
Specification:
Brand
GardnersDream
Colour
Pink and white
Product type
Flowers
Plant Height
20 to 30 cm
Pros
Easy to plant and raise
Nice pattern increase garden beauty
Grows really fast
Cons
Small size
It might fade if allowed to grow under full sunlight.
Lonicera 'Gold Flame' Honeysuckle Hardy Garden Climber Shrub
The Lonicera ‘Gold Flame’ Honeysuckle Hardy Garden Climber Shrub is a climbing plant with a unique pattern of orange and pink, It is beautiful, highly fragrant, and would make a perfect addition to your garden. With its beautiful and bright colours, the Lonicera ‘Gold Flame’ Honeysuckle Hardy Garden Climber Shrub has a heavy and attractive scent too. It can be trained to climb a trellis or a fence, but this would require it to be tied to the support because it lacks the curling and twining vines to attach itself to a surface. It requires humus-rich, well-drained soil and the said soil must be kept moist, but not too moist.
Key Features:
It is a hardy deciduous climber
The plant height is about 20 to 30 cm
It has an ultimate height of 4 to 8 m
Specification:
Brand
GardnersDream
Colour
Pink and orange
Product type
Flowers
Plant Height
20 to 30 cm
Pros
It is beautiful and attractive
It grows very tall
It is easy to grow
Cons
It cannot grow without support
Might be a bit more tedious to maintain
Wisteria Rosea
The Wisteria Rosea is a pink deciduous hardy climbing garden plant. It can be planted on any moist and well-watered soil. Once this plant is well-grounded, you would only need to water them during periods of dry weather alone. It can be planted in a place with a shade, but its flowers fully bloom under the open sun. It is known to grow to around 9 m tall, and roughly about 5 m wide. It can be trained to climb a trellis and would coat your wall with beautiful and attractive colours during spring and summer year after year. It is also known to give off a pleasant fragrance.
Key Features:
Grows to about 9 m in height
Requires a moist surface to be planted on
It flowers under a full sun
Specification:
Brand
GardnersDream
Colour
Pink
Product type
Flowers
Plant Height
Up to 9m
Pros
Doesn’t require too much water except in dry weathers
It is easy to plant and maintain
It grows up to 9 m tall
Cons
It needs to be trained with a trellis
It comes in a small size
PREMIER SEEDS DIRECT - Nasturtium Climbing - Gleam HYBRIDS
The PREMIER SEEDS DIRECT – Nasturtium Climbing – Gleam HYBRIDS is a unique, easy to grow plant that can act both as a crawler and a climber. It takes about 10 to 14 days for the seed of the plant if planted under the right conditions. The seed can be sown in sandy, well-drained soil. It does not require a fertilizer used on the ground before the seed is planted. That would lead to more foliage growing than flowers. The soil should also be kept moist and in its initial stage, it should be kept at a certain temperature to ensure proper growth.
Key Features:
It can grow up to 5ft high
Takes 10 to 14 days for it to sprout
Can be grown on sandy soil
Specification:
Brand
Premier Seeds Direct
Colour
Red, Yellow, Orange
Product type
Flower
Plant Height
3 - 5ft
Pros
It is easy to plant and maintain
It adds a variety of colour to your garden
It grows quite tall
Cons
It might be too heavy to grow on a gate
Seeds might be smaller
LONICERA 'BELGICA' DECIDUOUS Climbing Shrub Hardy Garden Plant in Pot
The LONICERA ‘BELGICA’ DECIDUOUS Climbing Shrub Hardy Garden Plant in Pot is a very resilient deciduous climber. It has paired ovate leaves and fragrant red-flushed white flowers. As it ages, the flowers turn yellow in summer, and then red berries. These plants are usually Scottish grown.
Key Features:
They are Scottish Grown
They are deciduous climbers
They change colours with the season
Specification:
Brand
GardnersDream
Colour
Red, Yellow
Product Type
Flowers
Product Height
NA
Pros
They have beautiful colours
They Scottish grown, thus strong and dexterous
They come with 9 cm pot
Cons
They could be small in the initial
This particular flower is not evergreen
Azalea 'Geisha Purple' Japanese Evergreen Shrub Hardy Plant in Pot
The Azalea ‘Geisha Purple’ Japanese Evergreen Shrub Hardy Plant in Pot has beautiful purple coloured flowers. It has green foliage that is always present not minding the season, and as late spring approaches the reddish-purple tone begins to emerge. The plant should be planted in moist, well-drained soil. During warmer seasons, regular watering of the plant is needed due to the rise in temperature. This climber would definitely brighten up your garden.
Key Features:
It has green foliage kept all year round
It ultimately grows to 0.5 – 1 m
Its flower comes out as it ages
Specification:
Brand
GardnersDream
Colour
Purple
Product Type
Flowers
Product Height
20 - 30 cm
Pros
It is easy to maintain
It is okay with full or partial sunlight exposure
It beautifies your garden
Cons
Its arrival size might be too small
Its overall size is also quite small
YouGarden Wisteria Climbing Plant
The YouGarden Wisteria Climbing Plant is perfect for porches, archways, large pots, and pathways. It is easy to grow in sunny spots, and it is best grown on walls, pergolas, and trellises. It has a sublime fragrance, and it blooms from April to June. It is a deciduous plant, as a result, it enters a state of dormancy in winter. It enjoys full sun exposure for growth. It can grow as tall as 10 m if left without pruning, and it is quite easy to prune. Its dripping nature adds a homely feel to your garden.
Key Features:
It is easy to plant and maintain
It is a deciduous climber
It weighs about 3 kg
Specification:
Brand
YouGarden
Colour
Blue
Product type
Flowers
Product height
Up to 10m
Pros
It is easy to plant and maintain
Adds a unique beauty with hits dripping blue flowers
It grows quite fast
Cons
It is not an evergreen climber
If not pruned properly, it could grow too wide.
Summary
Benefits of Climbing Plants
Apart from the aesthetic appeal it adds to your garden, shade-loving climbers add a level of depth to the overall beauty of your garden. Therefore, making the right choice of a climbing plant would reflect a deeper level of appreciation of nature in your person.
Adding a climbing plant to your garden also adds a layer of complexity that could be quite intriguing at the same time appealing to lovers of nature around you. The right colour and tone could work well with your current rattan cube garden furniture, or further complement your garden string lights. You may also like to see other garden guides, such as:
Flowering plants for shades also help to improve the overall air quality of your garden. This is very important to a gardener as the quality of air in an environment can vastly affect the health of residents in that environment.
It is also a fact that garden plants in general and climbing plants not excluded reduce stress and create feeling of good health and helps to improve the overall quality of a person’s health. They are also known to help reduce background noise of the hustle and bustle of city live.
At this point, not wanting to get a climbing plant for shaded areas would be losing out on a fantastic opportunity to have an awesome garden improvement.
Factors to Consider While Buying Climbing Plants
Here are a few things you can take into account when choosing a climbing plant for shades
Colour
While picking a wall-climbing plant you have to pay attention to the colour of the plant and its flowers. Since climbing plans add depth, complexity, and beauty to your garden, you should pick one that matches your garden and complements the existing setting.
Height and width
The potential height of the flower you are going to pick is of great importance this would determine the wall or trellis to support the climbing plant.
FAQ About Climbing Plants
How do I plant my climbing plant?
First, make sure the soil you would be planting in is well watered and moist, your planting spot should be at least 35 to 40 cm away from the wall, mesh, or trellis you intend to let the climbing plant get attached to. Dig a hole, make sure the hole is as deep as the pot you are transferring your climbing plant from, not deeper. Transfer your plant from its pot to the dug hole and cover the topsoil. It is advisable to mulch the ground around the root of the plant to retain moisture. Depending on the type of plant, you can attach its stem to the mesh or trellis to guide and train its growth.
Can climbing plants be planted indoors?
Climbing plants can be planted indoors if you have an indoor garden, but that is dependent on whether they need full sunlight or not. There should also be space for the flowers to grow and spread even indoors for you to appreciate the beauty of the climbing plants.
Do I need a trellis for my climbing plant?
There are basically two types of climbing plants, self-clinging, and twining varieties. As the name implies, the self-clinging variety attaches itself to the wall surfaces without any need for a trellis. They do this using aerial roots or adhesive pads. On the other hand, the twining variety would inevitably require a trellis or mesh to twine up around.
Does the type of support matter?
Walls, arcs, and trellises are amongst the most popular kinds of support for climbing plants. Depending on the variety of climbing plants in your garden the type of support you use could be very important. Twinning climbers for example would definitely need something they can twine around while growing. Whichever form of support you use, the most important thing is for the support to be strong enough to bear the weight of the plant.
How to make the most of verticle garden space
This video shows how you can make the most out of your walls, fences or any other verticle space in your garden:
Further Reading
For more tips on climbing plants, click here.