Hi everyone, I just put in this light-weight garden arch over my small garden pond. I put down some blue and white striped Japanese Morninglory seeds which are quick growers. I'm looking for advise on another vine to grow on this arch. Here's my wish list: quick grower, all season long color, attractive to butterflies and hummingbirds, and deer resistant. I already have a red cypress vine, a moonflower vine and a coral honeysuckle fairly close by so don't want to use either of those. Please let me know what you would chose to plant.

Thanks

Petrea volubilis (Queen's wreath) is a gorgeous vine but I'm not sure if it's hardy in your zone. Same goes for Stephanotis.
Didn't we use to have our zones next to our profile? I should ask about that...

I already have the Stephanotis, but it's in a pot and I do protect it in the winter, otherwise I don't think it would survive here. The Queen's Wreath is very pretty but again, don't think that would last one of our harsher winters. I'm not averse to replanting each year, as long as the vine produced seeds or seed pods that I could collect and use for next years vine. I would like a bit more color than just the white and I really want to attract more hummingbirds other than the one lone female that seems to come by the yard now and then.

Will Thunbergia survive there? I think that is a zone 9 rated plant.

How about Thungergia battiscombei: http://www.floridata.com/ref/t...

Or Clitorea ternatea ("Butterfly Pea"): http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/C...

Confederate Jasmine. Evergreen. Flutter Bys like it --- not sure if hummers do. White flowers smell like heaven (to me) & quick grower...maybe quicker than you'd like And quite drought tolerant once established. That leaves you with the white flower which I know you wanted to get away from.
How about scarlet runner beans? You would have to replant from seed. Worth a look see --- check them out. I know hummers adore them.
That's my 2 cents worth.

Ann

PS!!!!!!!! You can't EAT the beans! Poison! Strictly ornamental.

Confederate Jasmine would be beautiful but it might topple that arbor quickly and take over everything nearby.

http://www.floridata.com/ref/t...

Thanks for all the great ideas. My brother ended up getting me a rangoon creeper, which he knew I had been lusting after for a couple of years. It's supposed to be zone 10 but I know a couple of people north of me have them and have good luck with them. It also might be too heavy for the trellis, but the research I did says it takes well to clipping to keep it under control. We shall see. In any case, I LOVE this vine! :)

Thanks again everyone.

Clipping is essential: it blooms on new growth so be sure to trim it in the early spring.

Glad you got your plant!

I'm enjoying growing hyacinth bean. blooms last a long time. loves the heat. perfect size for that arbor. comes in pink and white.

http://www.burpee.com/flowers/...

I personally love my rangoon creeper but it does need to be kept in check if you don't have a heavy structure to support it. Mine grows over my chain link dog kennel and up into neighboring bushes. It gets trimmed back around March 1 each year. The only problem I see is that if you have to keep trimming it back to contain it and keep it light, you won't see many or any blooms.

It blooms on new growth, I think you should probably trim a tad earlier.

Dutchlady1 said:It blooms on new growth, I think you should probably trim a tad earlier.

Hetty,
If you were referring to my trim date, around March 1 give or take a week, works for me. By June, it has taken over the kennel and blooms profusely. Last year, it produced 300 seeds.

Here is a photo of mine taken on June 4,2010 after being cut back in March. The kennel is 15 ft long and 6 ft across to give an idea of how large and heavy this vine gets.

http://garden.org/thread/view_...

Sorry - I thought you said 'you won't see many blooms'. Clearly I misunderstood!

I did but I was referring to if you had to continually trim it back to handle the light weight of the trellis in the first photo. Yes they bloom on new growth but the new growth has to be allowed to grow out to bloom. If you keep trimming off the ends of the new growth, you won't get as many blooms.

Thunbergia is a tender climber. It will freeze back to the ground in Dec.
Vines are not twiners so they need a little training to go up the fence or the arbor.