Re: fast climbers/ fragrant plants
Anna Ingre wrote:
> Some interesting Ipomoeas: I. lobata (Mina lobata) and I x multifida, the
> Cardinal Climber - both are quite lovely and attract hummingbirds. I have
> grown them in Zone 8 (Portland, OR) where they are annuals and not in the
> least invasive. I don't know how they would work in your climate. There is
> also I. quamoclit (Quamoclit pennata), the Cypress Vine. It looks beautiful
> in pictures but I have had no experience growing it.
Hi Alessandra,
May I second Anna's recomendation of the Ipomoea genus. Last year I grew
Ipomoea batatas 'Marguerite' as a filler inside a bamboo teepee of French
beans. Yes, a sweet potato, but this one has large (to 6" across) lime green
leaves and grows fast to 10 ft. or so. It looked wonderful behind the darker
leaves of the beans. I pulled it out at the end of the season with the beans.
It really had sweet potatoes down there under the soil, but I was not
adventurous enough to try them. There is a black leafed variety called
"Blackie" and both are very popular in local nurseries at the end of spring.
I've seen them used in container plantings for leaf and color contrast as well
as in the garden.
> Lablab purpureus
> (Dolichos lablab), the Hyacinth bean has beautiful foliage and charming
> flowers and is a very fast grower in my zone.
Fast grower in Southern California as well and I've never seen it become
invasive. Those purple pods that follow the flowers are better than the
flowers! Kids love them.
> Depending on climate it has
> the potential to be invasive. I grow it the same way as Scarlet Runner
> beans - some of these also have beautiful flowers.
I'm going to go for these Scarlet Runner Beans this year. The memory of them in
Rosemary Verey's kitchen garden is just too haunting!
Cucurbita moschata 'Tromboncino' grows at Hortus Nursery (in Pasadena) every
season over the arbor and dangles it's long fruits in front of everyone passing
through. Everyone +must+ give them a punch as they walk under and around!
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Jan Smithen,
Upland, California
jansmithen@earthlink.net
Sunset zone : 19
USDA zone : 10
http://home.earthlink.net/~jansmithen/
Visit the Los Angeles County Arboretum
Victorian Rose Garden website at:
http://victorian-rose.org/
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