Wisteria vine with purple blooms growing on a rock wall.

Vines and Climbers

Are you looking to add a bit of vertical interest to your home garden? Climbing plants and vines are a great way to elevate the look of any outdoor space. Not only are they easy on the eyes, but they bring lovely texture and can provide much needed shade or privacy areas for portions of your property. Growing climbing plants is also quite simple with just a bit of knowledge. Read our guides below for tips and helpful hints so you can learn how to grow and care for these enchanting additions to your landscape.

How Long Does Clematis Bloom?

A close up horizontal image of bright pink clematis flowers growing in the garden pictured on a soft focus background.

Clematis can be long-flowering, showy plants, so it’s no wonder that they have found a place in gardens across the globe. Some bloom longer than others, and different types flower at different times during the season. Learn about how long clematis bloom and how to extend the bloom time in this guide. Read more now.

How to Grow and Care for American Bittersweet Vines

A close up horizontal image of the berries and foliage of American bittersweet (Celastrus scandens) growing in the garden, pictured on a soft focus background.

The native alternative to Oriental bittersweet, American bittersweet has the same dazzling, bright, colorful berries without the tendency to overtake everything in its path. Excellent food for wildlife, and superb for wreath making and seasonal decoration, learn to grow this unusual woodland climber in this guide.

5 Reasons Your Pumpkin Vine Isn’t Blooming

A large pumpkin patch with abundant, large leaves but no flowers.

You’ve nourished and cared for your pumpkin seedlings, and they’ve grown vines and leaves. Flowers should’ve appeared by now, but you don’t see any blooms – and no flowers means no fruit. Did something go wrong? Read more now to learn the top 5 reasons why your pumpkin vine isn’t blooming, and what to do about it.

Tips for Growing Flowering Vines

A close up horizontal image of pink and white clematis flowers growing over rocks.

Flowering vines have long strands of blossoms to train over arbors, fences, and trellises, adding color and movement, and forming living privacy screens. From soft and herbaceous to woody and evergreen, there are options for all to enjoy. Read on and get ready to beautify your outdoor living space with flowering vines.

11 of the Best Non-Invasive Flowering Vines to Grow in the North

A close up horizontal image of a large American wisteria vine growing outside a residence.

Vines tough enough to thrive in Zones 3-6 are sometimes prone to becoming invasive. And others might not necessarily be invasive, but they don’t put on a very impressive floral display. If you’re looking for the Goldilocks of flowering vines, learn about 11 that will thrive in northern climates without taking over.

How to Grow and Care for Hyacinth Bean Vines

A close up of a Lablab purpureus vine growing in the garden, with large green leaves, purple flowers, and green seed pods, in bright sunshine.

Not just a beauty, the hyacinth bean produces glorious blooms as well as showy purple pods and edible shoots. It grows fast as an arbor or living privacy fence, and avoiding its potentially toxic tendencies is simple. This guide will tell you how to tap all that purple power, and there’s nothing tough about growing it!

How to Grow and Care for Spanish Flag (Firecracker Vine)

A close up horizontal image of red and white firecracker vine (aka Spanish flag) flowers pictured on a soft focus background.

Also known as firecracker vine, Spanish flag can grow 10 feet in a month and produces abundant, multicolored blooms from summer until first frost. A favorite of bees and hummingbirds, it can act as a living privacy fence. Our guide provides tips for growing this easy-care annual, from sowing to fertilizing.

How and When to Prune Star Jasmine

A close up horizontal image of star jasmine (Trachelospermum jasminoides) growing in the garden outside a residence.

With glossy, evergreen leaves, pretty, star-shaped flowers, and an enticing fragrance, the twining stems of star jasmine are highly popular for climbing upright structures or spreading as a ground cover. To keep your vines dense, lush, and floriferous, we share the tips you’ll need to cut back star jasmine.

19 of the Best Vines for Vibrant Summer Color

A close up horizontal image of bright pink bougainvillea flowers growing in the garden pictured on a blue sky background.

With unique, climbing growth, vines are excellent for adding vertical interest in the garden – their bold flowers and handsome foliage are perfect to soften and cover upright structures like arbors, porches, and privacy screens. For handsome greenery and bright flowers, here are 19 vines for vibrant summer color.

19 of the Best Summer Blooming Clematis Plants for Your Garden

A close up of pink and white 'Pink Fantasy' flowers with contrasting dark pink center, growing in the garden, on a dark soft focus background.

If you need a perennial that gives long-lasting, reliable color during the hot months, summer flowering clematis is a great choice. Terrific for vertical interest, as a groundcover, or weaving through trees and shrubs, these hardy vines are easy to care for and maintain. Discover 19 of the best varieties for your garden.

How to Grow and Care for Crossvine Flowers

A close up of the trumpet shaped, red and yellow flowers of the crossvine, Bignonia capreolata, flanked by dark green foliage on a soft focus background.

If you’re looking for an assertive climbing vine that can take heat and drought and still reward with spectacular displays of yellow, orange, and red trumpet-shaped flowers, consider crossvine, Bignonia capreolata. This evergreen US native is easy to care for, bothered by few pests, and can grow to be 50 feet tall.

How to Grow Carolina Jessamine

A close up of a Gelsemium sempervirens vine growing in the garden with bright yellow flowers contrasting with the dark green foliage.

Offering a spectacular springtime display of bright yellow, trumpet-shaped blooms, the assertive Carolina jessamine vine happily climbs up arbors and scrambles over fences all over the southeastern United States and beyond. Read our expert advice to learn how to add this easy-care native plant to your garden now.

17 of the Best Wisteria Varieties

A close up horizontal image of purple wisteria flowers blooming in evening sunshine pictured on a soft focus background.

Wisterias come in a range of exciting varieties, including native types that won’t become invasive, but still grow quickly and well. They can have white, pink, purple, lavender, or blue blossoms. Some bloom once, and others return for a second flush later in the year. Meet 17 of the best options in this guide.

How to Grow and Care for Passionflowers

A close up of a passionflower growing on the vine with light colored petals and a blue, white, and red crown, surrounded by foliage.

Passionflower has a long history of cultivation for the unique beauty of its blooms and delicious, tropical fruits. This fast-growing vine will reward you with beautiful blooms from spring through fall and attract pollinators to your garden. Learn how to plant and grow passionflower in your garden. Read more now.

Grow Cardinal Climber for Spring to Frost Color

A single red cardinal climber flower in bloom.

Cardinal climber is a tender annual vine with red trumpet-like blossoms and palm-like leaves. Give it room to sprawl across a fence or up a trellis for pops of intense color from summer to frost. Discover how this hybrid was created and learn all you need to know to grow it in your landscape, here on Gardener’s Path.

15 of the Best Morning Glory Varieties for Home Gardeners

Close up of a blue morning glory flower with a yellow and white center.

Easy to grow and vigorous, with striking blooms, the morning glory is a go-to option when you need a lot of space covered fast. Plenty of colorful options are available to coordinate with your existing plantings. Check out 15 of the best morning glory varieties and find your favorites now.

How to Grow and Care for Wisteria

A horizontal image of Chinese wisteria growing on a stone wall with pretty purple flowers cascading over the side.

A wisteria in bloom is like something out of a fairy tale, with otherworldly clusters of purple, white, or pink blossoms dripping all over the vine. But it can quickly become a nightmare if it grows where you don’t want it to. Learn how to grow this plant properly so that you can enjoy the blooms without the drama.

When and How to Transplant Clematis

A close up horizontal image of pink clematis flowers growing in the garden pictured on a soft focus background.

Clematis has a reputation for being hard to transplant, but it helps to understand its growth habits. Clematis needs to establish healthy roots before flowering and disturbed roots need time to recover. A vine that is shocked after moving is working on its roots. Our transplant tips will help you succeed! Read more.

How to Winterize Bougainvillea

A close up horizontal image of pink bougainvillea flowers pictured on a soft focus background.

Tropical plants like the bougainvillea aren’t able to withstand freezing temps, frost, or snow. As winter approaches, they’ll need to be protected from damage in cooler zones, whether they’re planted outdoors or growing in containers. Winterizing paperflower is easy! Learn how to keep yours safe when temperatures drop.

How to Grow and Care for Bougainvillea

A horizontal image of pink and white bougainvillea adorning the entrance to a building pictured on a blue sky background in bright sunshine.

Are you looking for a blooming, vigorous vine that’s also super versatile? Well, look no further than bougainvillea. This brightly-colored beauty can be grown as a cascading vine, shrub, or tree, but it can do so much more. Read more to discover your options and learn how to keep paperflowers healthy and gorgeous.

How to Overwinter Passionflower Vines Inside or Outdoors

A close up horizontal image of a passionflower growing on the vine with foliage in soft focus in the background.

Want to keep your passionflowers going in the garden even though you live in a cold climate? You don’t have to give up on your dreams of enjoying this subtropical, multi-purpose beauty as a perennial. Passionflowers can be overwintered indoors or protected outdoors to help them survive the cold. Read more now.

How to Winterize Boston Ivy

A horizontal image of a house covered in Boston ivy with the foliage turning red in fall.

Boston ivy is known for its toughness, but it could use a helping hand in wintertime. In this guide, you’ll learn how to prepare your Boston ivy for winter, plus we go over the necessary tools and techniques to ensure that your plant survives the dormant season in good health, and emerges in spring ready to grow.

17 of the Best Fall-Blooming Clematis Varieties

A close up horizontal image of pink fall-blooming clematis flowers growing in the garden.

If you’re looking to add some dramatic fall color to your garden, look no further than clematis varieties that bloom in autumn. These plants stand out most when all the other summer-blooming species are reaching the end of their performance. Here are 17 of the most outstanding species and cultivars to look for.

How to Grow and Care for Boston Ivy

A horizontal image of Boston ivy (Parthenocissus tricuspidata) with resplendent fall colors gracing the outside of a stone building.

Boston ivy is a durable, gorgeous, and adaptable vine that grows on brick and mortar surfaces with ease and style. With both ornamental and practical uses, nearly everyone can find a use for it in the garden. A plant rich in fall color and botanical history, this is definitely a worthy addition to your landscape.

Types of Honeysuckle Plants: 13 of the Best Species for Your Garden

A close up horizontal image of Lonicera japonica honeysuckle flower growing in the garden pictured on a soft focus background.

Despite an invasive reputation, honeysuckle plants are beautiful specimens worth adding to the garden. They are hardy, vigorous growers that will provide beautiful blooms and attract pollinators to your landscape. From the alpine honeysuckle to the woodbine honeysuckle, we’ll cover primo varieties most worth planting.

How to Plant and Grow Virginia Creeper

A close up horizontal image of the bright red foliage and small black berries of Virginia creeper (Parthenocissus quinquefolia) growing in the garden.

Virginia creeper is a native vine that thrives in average soil, tolerates shade, and doesn’t appeal to deer. Autumn color and deep blue berries make it sound like the perfect plant. However, its aggressive nature and suckering tendrils may pose problems. Is Virginia creeper right for your landscape? Read on and decide.

How to Grow and Care for Clematis

A close up horizontal image of purple 'Princess Charlotte' clematis growing on the outside of a residence.

Clematis are beautiful climbing vines covered with masses of flowers in the spring, summer, or fall garden, depending on the type. Fast-growing, they’re also easy to care for but need annual pruning for gorgeous floral displays. Find all the cultivation details right here, in our complete clematis growing guide.

Why Isn’t My Passionflower Producing Fruit?

A close up horizontal image of a green developing passion fruit pictured in light evening sunshine.

Passionflowers, also known as passion fruit, are usually simple to grow. They’re low-maintenance and fairly tough. But if your passionflowers aren’t producing fruit, something isn’t right with their growing conditions. Whether it’s sun exposure, fertilizer, or pollination issues, a little change can help a lot.

7 Common Reasons Why Passionflower Fails to Bloom

A close up horizontal image of a white and purple passionflower pictured on a soft focus background.

Passionflowers are known for their incredible blossoms. It’s right there in the name! But when things go wrong, your vine might fail to put on that display. Plus, no flowers means no fruit – it’s a terrible chain reaction. To fix the problem, you have to determine the cause. That’s what this guide aims to help you do.

17 of the Best Passionflower Species and Hybrids to Grow at Home

A close up horizontal image of two passionflowers growing on the vine with foliage in soft focus in the background.

With nearly 600 known species of passionflowers, there is a lot of variety out there, from plants with massive red blossoms to those with petite purple ones. You can find vines that produce long, banana-shaped fruits and others with the familiar egg shape. From the rare to the common, we share some of the best options.

How to Prune Clematis Vines for Copious Flowers

A close up horizontal image of purple clematis vines growing up a brick wall.

Clematis are beautiful, showy vines with pretty flowers in bold colors. Easy to cultivate, they flower in spring, summer, or fall, depending on the type – and each type has specific pruning requirements for the most floriferous displays. Learn how to prune clematis for strong, healthy vines with copious flowers. Read more.

How to Train Clematis to Grow Vertically Up Poles or Trees

A close up horizontal image of a bright pink clematis vine covering the side of a residence.

Clematis vines are loved for their spectacular floral displays and give the most impressive show when trained to grow up pergolas, poles, or trees. But they can’t grow upright without a supportive trellis, and it needs to be the right size for the leaf stems to grasp onto. Learn how to train clematis to grow vertically.

9 Reasons for Yellow Clematis Leaves

A close up horizontal image of bright purple clematis flowers growing on the vine pictured in bright filtered sunshine.

Flowering clematis vines and shrubs are suited to cultivation in USDA Zones 4 to 9. An array of species and cultivars is available, with bloom times ranging from spring to fall. But sometimes the lush green foliage shades to yellow. Read on to discover 9 causes of clematis leaf yellowing and how to manage them.

How to Grow Clematis in Containers

A close up horizontal image of purple clematis flowers growing in a terracotta pot.

Dramatic, hardy, long-blooming, and low-maintenance – the flowering clematis vine is a popular choice for container planting, often selected to beautify a plain mailbox, hide an ugly fence, or attract butterflies and hummingbirds to the patio. Learn how easy it is to add a potted clematis to your yard. Read more now.

13 of the Best Spring-Flowering Clematis Varieties (Group 1)

A close up horizontal image of pink clematis spilling over a brick wall.

Reliable perennials with masses of pretty and sometimes fragrant flowers, Group 1 clematis are deciduous or evergreen and bloom from winter to mid-spring. Depending on the variety, these easy-care vines tower on trellises or scramble down slopes and require no pruning. Here are 13 of the best spring-flowering clematis.

How to Prepare Jasmine Plants for Cold Weather

A close up horizontal image of jasmine covered in a dusting of snow.

Gorgeous, lavishly scented jasmine is sensitive to low temperatures and winter weather conditions. Keeping your jasmine thriving through the winter months may require some extra effort to protect and winterize the plants, including moving them indoors in regions where seasonal die-off can occur. Read more now.

How to Grow and Care for Japanese Honeysuckle

A close up horizontal image of the creamy yellow flowers of Japanese honeysuckle (Lonicera japonica) pictured on a soft focus background.

While Japanese honeysuckle is a favorite for pollinators, and known for being tolerant of neglect, it also has a reputation for unbridled growth and spreading out of control. In some areas, planting is discouraged or outlawed, but if you’re in a “safe zone,” this vine can bring the fragrance of summer to your garden.

Are Climbing Vines Harmful to Your Home?

A close up horizontal image of the outside of a residence covered in large ornamental vines.

Vines like Chinese wisteria and evergreen Boston ivy may give a home a stately and elegant appearance. However, one can’t help but wonder if their winding ways are secretly causing damage to a home’s outer surfaces, like shingles and siding. Before you plant, read on to learn how vines may affect your home’s facade.

How to Prune and Control Asiatic Jasmine Vines

A close up of two hands wearing gardening gloves and holding red pruning shears, cutting a Trachelospermum asiaticum plant growing next to a pathway.

Deep-green Asian, or Asiatic, jasmine is a fantastic ground cover, especially for shady areas of the garden. But like many plants, it can get out of hand. Read more now to learn about several methods for pruning and controlling the spread of this assertive vine. Your neighbors will be glad you did!

How to Grow Asiatic Jasmine

Asiatic jasmine growing as a ground cover over a paved surface showing dark green and variegated leaves in light sunshine.

If you’re in need of a quick-growing ground cover that tolerates shade, salt, heat, cold, and drought, consider Asiatic jasmine, the easy-to-grow, low-maintenance import from Japan and Korea that quickly develops a thick carpet of cover, filling in your garden’s most problematic and frustrating bare spots.

27 of the Best Cold Hardy Clematis Varieties

A close up of a clematis vine with light and dark purple flowers with green leaves behind them, against a green metal fence. In the background are trees and vegetation in soft focus.

Looking for a tough, reliable vine to survive your cold winters? One that puts on a gorgeous display of flowers in spring and summer, and that can handle the rigors of sub-zero temperatures and drying, frigid winds? You’ll love our list of the best cold hardy clematis varieties for Zones 3 and 4. Read more now.

Native Vines for Your Landscape

Red trumpet creeper vines climbing a wall.

Vines are handy for trellis or lattice arbors, to trace up trees, or to decorate a mailbox. For many, the thought of planting a native vine in their landscape or garden is preferential due to their easy maintenance. If you are considering a native vine, then these profiles should give you a few choices to …

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