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Gardening

Find tips and tricks to make your garden or allotment flourish on our Gardening forum.

Original poster

Completely knew to gardening and need some advice

11 replies

TwoTeaTessie · 19/08/2015 17:49

In our back garden we have a rather long 6 foot fence separating us from the rest of the street. It's bamboo with support posts. Unfortunately it isn't very private as you can see through it.
We want to plant climbers to provide a bit more cover rather than forking out for a new fence (which we can't afford at the minute). Dh and I went to look at plants the other day and came across a plant called a Russian vine nick named mile a minute. I happened to mention the possibility to my FIL and he sucked through his teeth and said it's not a good idea.
I was wondering if anyone had any experience and advise me please?

OP posts:
florentina1 · 19/08/2015 18:50

It is very rampant and needs quite heavy cutting back to keep it check. It will cover a wall very quickly, but it will loose its leaves in the winter, so no privacy then. It is a cheap plant to buy though. You might be better off with evergreens, but they will not be cheap if you want to cover a 6 ft fence.

Original poster
TwoTeaTessie · 19/08/2015 19:12

Which evergreen would you suggest and would it grow well with other plants or would it just drown it?

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dodobookends · 19/08/2015 19:19

Russian Vine - NO NO NO!!!!!!

It's called 'Mile-a Minute' for a reason... it gets big and covers stuff quickly, but it doesn't stop there, it keeps going and going - on and on. It can turn into a nightmare, honestly don't plant it.

florentina1 · 19/08/2015 19:32

How long is the fence ? Summer and winter jasmine inter planted with clematis will give you cover. Summer jasmine loses it leaves in early spring, and then bursts into beautiful scented flowers from May to August. Then it stays green till February. The clematis will leaf up just as the summer Jasmine is losing its leaves. the monta clematis grow quickly, but are best planted in Spring. Winter jasmine is evergreen and pretty but although it will climb it takes ages to spread.

Conifers are very good, not the leylandii, but the golden or blue ones, but quite expensive. Euonymus, berberis, and pyracantha also evergreen. For quick cover but not evergreen are Boston Ivy and Virginia Creeper.

Sometimes it is a cheaper to replace the fence than plant a long garden. Crocus, or RHS website are good for ideas.

Original poster
TwoTeaTessie · 19/08/2015 19:53

Our fence is between 9 and 10 metres. I'm willing to crow from cuttings and for it to take time as we literally have no money an not likely to have for time to come, so slow and steady is welcome.
We can't have conifers as my Dh has a allergic reaction to them.
It seems the Russian vine is out and I will have a look at the options you've given. Any ideas are still welcome

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Moln · 19/08/2015 19:59

There's always ivy. Though it takes a few seasons to get going and will need pruning too

It's not quite as mad as Russian vine though.

Moln · 19/08/2015 20:07

Pyracantha is a good one. Good intruder plant too. I've got two out on my front garden on the wall that divides my back and front garden as years ago we got a lot of people jumping over to access to street behind from our road.

Haven't had anyone over the wall since, it's nice looking too and wildlife like it. Though you'll need decent tough gardening gloves, not called 'fire thorn' for nothing!!

Madamacadamia · 19/08/2015 20:09

I have Russian Vine - it's a nightmare, don't get it. It really is mile-a-minute in the growing season.

Original poster
TwoTeaTessie · 19/08/2015 20:42

Would Pyracantha be good with a little one though? My youngest is 3 and loves the gardening.

I'm not a fan of Ivy we have it climbing over the shed as well, so my garden may start looking like an army camouflage camp!

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shovetheholly · 20/08/2015 09:52

I hesitate to ask this because it seems obvious - but if this is one of those flimsy roll-out kind of fences, it might not be robust enough to take a climber, which may well require wires or a trellis to be fixed in place. Have you thought about planting a hedge instead and then eventually removing the bamboo fence? You can buy small hedging trees very cheaply online. They will take a few years to get big and bushy, but it gives you a more attractive and permanent solution in time.

Original poster
TwoTeaTessie · 20/08/2015 11:48

The fence posts are really quite robust. The bamboo was put up as a short term fix, but unfortunately sort term is becoming longer term and because it's the flimsy bamboo stuff it doesn't offer as much privacy as I would like.
I also wanted something more interesting than a hedge as most of my garden is either brick paved or tarmaced.

Again we can't afford to take the tarmac up as we don't know what's underneath (we suspect paving slabs) and as both of us work we don't have enough time to invest in doing it ourselves just yet

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