Northwest Palms

vine

I have taken a birch tree on the edge of my property that was scraggly and beginning to fail, and "begun converting it to a bird perch and trellis". I am confident that the ringing of the trunk and the application of Tordon have killed it.

I am looking for a robust climbing vine to take it over. Preferably something that is not an annual, but rather has old growth canes from which it advances each year, like grapes. Something with a nice flower both for the aesthetics and for hummingbirds and my nearby beehive would be a plus. I will be wrapping the vine around the main trunk and the primary and secondary branches that I am leaving. Of course, it must be able to take the z7a winters of my area, and a strong enough vine to take the wind that we get here.

Does anyone have any thoughts?

Thanks,
Adam

The following thread was started by Adam in Richland on February 09, 2008 at 8:46 am PST

Big red flowers hummingbirds will like. Likes heat. Fairly coldhardy.

I'm trying to think of something drought-tolerant but most of the drought-tolerant climbers I can think of are from climates that have mild winters.

The above followup was added by Rob Wagner on February 09, 2008 at 10:01 am PST.

I suggest reading some of the posts at the bottom of the page linked below before planting Campsis radicans.

Some of the Campsis hybrids may be less invasive, such as C.x tagliabuana 'Madame Galen', but will not be hummingbird friendly (no nectar).

I dug up two Madame Galens last fall. They were pretty, but scary. I'm just keeping my fingers crossed that they do not resprout this spring.

It is also possible that in your climate C. radicans will be well behaved - it would be otherwise ideal, but I myself would not take the risk.

An alternative - one of the larger honeysuckles, preferrably Lonicera brownii (esp. Mandarin or Scarlet), also Lonicera heckrotti or Lonicera sempervirens.

Hummers love them, they start early in the spring and are perfectly hardy.

• Campsis horror stories on Dave's Garden

While natural water will be limited where I live, supplemental spot irrigation will not be a problem for this plant.

Thanks for the input!

Adam

The above followup was added by Adam in Richland on February 09, 2008 at 3:32 pm PST.

Just thought of this vine - beautiful, evergreen, should be hardy in z7, not for hummers but the bees would go crazy over it.

It is a slow starter, but once established it should cover your tree in no time.

• Hydrangea integrifolia