Garden Structures – Arch planting

Most flowering shrubs and vines need at least six hours of sun each day, but some plants actually do better in the shade, so bear this in mind as you decide what to plant to glorify your arch.

The most common plantings seen on arches are climbing roses and/or clematis. There are very good reasons for this:

 

 

 

 

1. both plants are easy to grow
2. both are widely available in a range of colours and flower styles
3. they complement each other and have slightly different seasons so that as the roses go over, the clematis is still going strong.

However, there are variations in this general theme. In general, rambling roses, like ‘Albertine’ and ‘Kiftsgate’, require little pruning and will bloom heavily, but only for a short period of time. Climbing roses, on the other hand, such as ‘Golden Showers’, ‘Climbing Peace’, and the stunningly colourful ‘Climbing Josephs' Coat’, usually benefit from regular pruning and shaping. They probably won’t be as loaded with flowers at any one time as the ramblers, but they flower over a longer period, giving a more extended blooming season.

Clematis generally do best with their “heads in the sun and their feet in the shade”, so if you want to plant this lovely climber, you’ll need to mulch the roots to keep them cool in the summer. Alternatively, you can set a shallow planter over the root area and fill it with colourful annuals. While most clematis demand full sun, there are a few varieties, such as ‘Dr Ruppel’, that flower in shade.

There are other flowering plants that can be superb additions to an arch, such as honeysuckle and if this is your choice, you cannot beat lonicera periclymenum ‘Belgica’ for its elegantly fragrant scent and its cream shading to purple flowers in early summer. Another honeysuckle, ‘Halliana’, has yellow flowers and needs shade.

The golden hop, humulus lupulus 'Aureus', is always worth finding a place for - although it dies down in winter, vigorous new growth quickly spirals up the arch in most springs, unless the frost has been unusually severe.

Garden arch rose photograph by artandscience, used under a creative commons attribution licence.

 

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