Plants for a Purpose: climbing plants

More climbing plant inspiration:

Clematis x triternata ‘Rubromarginata’

Chosen by Nick Bailey, Gardeners' World presenter

Creating a cloud of delicate blooms from late summer into autumn this rampant climber has perhaps the strongest scent of any clematis and works perfectly over arches. The flowers of Clematis x triternata 'Rubromarginata', which are produced in abundance, are small with yellow stamens and white petals, stained pink at the tips.

Solanum laxum 'Album'

Chosen by Toby Buckland, Gardeners' World presenter

Give it a sunny spot, and Solanum laxum 'Album' flowers pretty much all-year-round, however the pearly-white blooms are at their most abundant in early autumn. Mine grows up to a balcony where the flowers froth above head-height.

Sollya heterophylla

Chosen by Flo Headlam, Garden Rescue presenter

Small enough to be useful in a limited space, the nodding blue flowers of Sollya heterophylla have a gentle melancholy. It's late summer flowering, bringing a little moodiness before the edible berries arrive in autumn.

Clematis x cartmanii ‘Avalanche’

Chosen by Manoj Malde, garden designer

I would choose to plant this evergreen clematis where I can see it from the house as it produces a mass of creamy white flowers from late winter to early spring, providing some much needed floral interest and colour in the garden when very little is happening. The added benefit is that this clematis is sweetly fragranced.

Dregea sinensis

Chosen by James Alexander-Sinclair, columnist and garden designer

Someone gave me a Dregea sinensis a couple of years ago. I had never heard of it before but planted it on a west facing wall and am always thrilled by the scent of the flowers every time I go for a walk in summer. Sweet as crushed meringue. Not suitable for really cold spots.

Clematis 'Apple Blossom'

Chosen by Emma Crawforth, horticultural editor

In spring, my garden fence is covered with the pretty pink-white blooms from this evergreen clematis, which perfume the air. With C. armandii in its breeding, it also produces long, elegant, dark green leaves. These are soft and flexible and red-toned when new. While some evergreen plants are not very hardy, this variety will take winter temperatures down to at least -10C. It's rangy, so give it a spot several meters wide, but it's not hard to keep an eye on tendrils that fancy climbing into other plants. As with other evergreens, leaves will drop throughout the year, but they are large and so easy to collect.

How to grow clematis

Clematis

Chosen by Jo Cloke, art editor

I grow several varieties of clematis and love how you can have a clematis flowering all year round, if you choose carefully. Some clematis have larger flower heads are some are tiny and delicate. They can work in a container, growing along some trellis or combined with a climbing rose. They are so reliable, long flowering and easy to care for.

Find a clematis for every season

Trachelospermum jasminoides

Chosen by Catherine Mansley, digital editor

On my walk home from work, there is an enormous star jasmine (Trachelospermum jasminoides). It smothers an entire wall of a building and, in summer, the heady scent of the millions of tiny flowers hits you from a mile off. I have one growing on a fence in my garden that hasn't yet reached such mammoth proportions, but I'm waiting hopefully. This vigorous climber combines the delicious flowers of a true jasmine with glossy evergreen foliage, so it looks good all year, not just when it's in flower.

How to grow star jasmine

Parthenocissus quinquefolia

Chosen by Oliver Parsons, horticultural sub-editor

One of my fences regularly gets covered with this cracker, coming in from next door or the park behind our garden. I don't mind though, as the rich-red October leaf colour is worth it. Just be careful where you plant it, because this is an aggressive climber that loves to spread its wings. Parthenocissus henryana is a less vigorous alternative to its invasive relation.

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