Hello everyone! I would love some suggestions for a readily available perennial climbing vine that will work on my balcony in Vancouver. Some details/requirements: 1. Has to fit in a fairly compact container. 2. Needs to survive a winter like the last one! 3. My balcony faces NW; the spot I've picked out gets lots of sun all day long in the summer. 4. I would prefer something fragrant, like confederate (star) jasmine, although I think that plant is not hardy enough for Vancouver. Thanks in advance for any suggestions!
Have you thought about honeysuckle (will that grow well in a container?) What about morning glories (I know they are somewhat weedy, but since you are using a container...) Actually, I'm not sure that morning glories are cold hardy there...do you know your zone?
Honeysuckle is an interesting suggestion -- I'll have to look into its hardiness! The zone thing is kind of confusing for Vancouver, IMO. I think "officially" we're zone 8, but last winter was very hard on plants: lots of things died that were not supposed to. Thus, I think it's probably safest to go with a perennial that will survive in zone 5 or 6.
Have you thought about clematis? I'm trying to grow mine in a container, guess I'll just have to wait to see how that goes! (I'm also not sure if they are cold hardy to zone 5, but they may be...would you want an evergreen? would it be ok if it lost all of its leaves for winter? would it be ok if it died back every winter to come back in spring? Just some questions that would probably better help narrow down the search :)
Also since it will be growing in a container, it won't have the warmth of the earth to keep it alive...something else to ponder.
Yes, I'd been thinking of clematis! I'll have to look into the question of container sizes and materials; there might not be enough room for a container large enough. And to answer your other questions: I don't mind the vine dying back in winter; it is so incredibly depressing outside in the winter here that no one will be going out there to look at it!
http://www.highcountrygardens.com/library/view/article/3/ Just found this with a bunch of vines and their hardiness zones for some other ideas :)
