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need advice on climbing plants

susananwmssusananwms Posts: 102
in Plants
Hi there, am a very inexperienced gardener, have grown loads of things, lots in wrong places, some plants taking over those next to them, border plants too close together but hey Im learning.  I thought i would ask advice on here before I make more mistakes. 
I have got a plain fence on side of patio, I think it is east facing, gets loads of sun till afternoon.  I have bought 2 wooden planters each 1.8 metres long 40cm high and wide.  
I plan to paint them same colour as fence and would really like to put in some climbers to cover fence as that is what I have got running down side of garden (clematis, jasmine, honeysuckle and what i thought was a climbing rose, but it does not seem to be doing much climbing) but are the containers too shallow for this?
Ideally I would love a climbing or rambling rose but if they are not suitable anything else would be fine.  Or should I just stick to small flowers
Would really like some good advice before I do anything wrong this time  :)
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  • FairygirlFairygirl west central ScotlandPosts: 35,520
    Honeysuckle is no good in a container, and I doubt a climbing rose would be either, but I don't grow them, so someone else could clarify that.
    Some of the smaller clematis will be fine, as they like a drier root run - the alpinas and macropetalas for example.
    Some of those jasmines aren't hardy everywhere, so you would need to check that you have a suitable location for that.
    You'll need a suitable soil medium too - not just compost, for whatever you plant.  :)
    It's a place where beautiful isn't enough of a word....


  • susananwmssusananwms Posts: 102
    Ok thanks for that, I thought it would not be suitable for a rose, think weather must be mild because have a few different jasmine that seem to thrive plus an olive tree.  it is definitely not down to my gardening, think I am just lucky with the earth and a south facing garden I most definitely have had a lot of luck as I think I left it too late in life to learn about gardening as I don't retain information like I used to. Did not know that I could not just use compost. Will have to look into that as well then
  • jonathan.colejonathan.cole Posts: 59
    If you want something like a climbing rose then lifting some patio slabs and planting in the ground is probably better.

    That's said, there are annual climbers that would probably do fine in a planter. Sweet peas, nasturtiums, Spanish flag etc.
  • susananwmssusananwms Posts: 102
    I never thought at all about sweet peas, all I ever do is google climbing plants and sweet peas never came up but I like the idea about them also I had never heard of Spanish flag but that looks really nice and colourful. 
    That has certainly given me some choices, I thought I might have had to settle for small border like stuff when I really wanted something to go up the fence.  Thank you for that advice
    The lifting of a patio stone is a great idea but there is a lot of hardcore beneath the patio as it is raised somewhat from the garden
  • FairygirlFairygirl west central ScotlandPosts: 35,520
    Sweet peas will certainly be fine, and you can plant those successfully with clematis.
    Make sure the soil medium is suitable though - not compost alone for sweet peas either. They need a lot of food and water to do well.  :)
    You'll need good supports for them all too, so if you decide on permanent planting, it's worth getting that in place first. If you look on the specialist clematis sites - Taylor's Clematis, Thorncroft and Hawthornes, you'll get ideas of what will suit your site and aspect etc. 

    Nasturtiums are the opposite though - poorer conditions for those. 
    It's a place where beautiful isn't enough of a word....


  • susananwmssusananwms Posts: 102
    Thank you will look at those sites now, always wonder which are best to order from.
    For the soil do you mean that compost has to be mixed with earth from the garden or do you just buy it in right mix.  I have just gone for compost every time just making sure that I do not go for the cheap ones
  • FairygirlFairygirl west central ScotlandPosts: 35,520
    You can use garden soil mixed with compost, or you can buy a John Innes soil based compost, which is really just a formula and is basically a soil and compost mix.
    Well rotted manure is also good, especially for sweet peas, and you can buy that from GCs etc. 
    Compost is fine for temporary planting - ie annuals, and although it's fine for potted sweet peas too, they do best in really good conditions, so a bit of extra oomph from manure is very beneficial  :)
    It's a place where beautiful isn't enough of a word....


  • susananwmssusananwms Posts: 102
    Thanks for that advice will get some of that, never knew there was that much difference between the soils before  :D
  • FairygirlFairygirl west central ScotlandPosts: 35,520
    edited July 2020
    When you plant in a container, the plant is very dependant on what it grows in, so it's more important than when they're in the open ground.
    Even a good, hearty compost isn't enough for a plant if it's going to be there longer term, so the top layer needs replacing each year too - some fresh compost at that time is ideal.
    Spring is usually the best time, just when most plants are starting into growth. Extras like slow release food can be added at that time too  :)

    I should have said earlier - if you line the planters with some plastic [old compost bags will do, stapled on ] that helps with water retention. Containers dry out more quickly, so it helps avoid too much watering if you're in a dry area. 
    It's a place where beautiful isn't enough of a word....


  • susananwmssusananwms Posts: 102
    I have seen people putting liners in their pots but I was wary of doing that in case i watered too much and the roots got waterlogged.  As it is now I water well every day but can see it running out of the bottom so I know the roots are not standing in loads of water.  Waste of water I suppose but it does run down off patio into the garden
    Thanks for that info about the soil.  I have loads of stuff in pots this year but more because of lockdown than anything, just something to do but will be more careful in future
    Ive got miracle gro all purpose liquid plant food and blood fish and bone with added potash.  Is one of these better than the other?
    I have got a bit of everything in pots at moment, salad stuff, vegetable, flowers and 2 small trees (which going into garden when I decide where they will go best) They both say for flowers and fruit and veg, have been using fish bone at moment
    Also I might as well ask while I am here.  I have magnolia bush or tree not sure which and says needs well drained soil.  I was thinking about putting at bottom end of garden where soil is fine and everything else is growing ok but in the winter when we have a lot of rain (and I mean a lot, I live in SW Wales) the ground gets very wet and boggy and sometimes puddles.  Does this mean that it is not well draining soil?
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