Vines or what.

Are you planning to eat the grapes? Grapes can make a huge mess all over the sidewalk or pathway and they stank if not cleaned up. They are slippery to walk upon and make you fall on your bum. They also stain concrete purple and attract all kinds of bugs. Just something to think about. Some other alternatives could be Star Jasmine, Honeysuckle, Wisteria, Clematis.

Wow Bathgate what a graphic description!
i think I might cut down the amount of grapevines I was planning. There is no path so they would fall on grass or soil, I may eat a few, would the wildlife eat any? I like Wisteria but it is a bit thin for cover. I remember my Grandma ( born 1880 ) having a gyponica I don`t know how it`s spelt but that`s phonetic, are they still about or is it just too long ago? I had a Clematis some time ago I think it was called Montana, good cover. thank for the ideas Pp

LOL, I'm not trying to play the grinch :). I had a huge grapevine behind my house when growing up. That's just how it's been. However, we made good grape jam and you can make dye from the grape skins and purple tie-dye T-shirts with the kids. That's a fun art project. However there were more grapes than we can eat & most of them ended up all over the ground. They can really ramble and you'll need to trim and keep them under control.

when you say 'cover rustic structures' what does that mean? Are there outbuildings or barns you want to cover?

The plant often called 'japonica' is usually Chaenomeles japonica - its a woody shrub, drops its leaves in winter, has bright red flowers in spring on bare wood. Clematis montana spreads around 35 feet tall and wide - but its not evergreen, if that matters.

Bamboo, I`ve so many trees to cut back mostly Hazel and multi shoots about 100 / 150mm dia. so I want to use them to make fences, arches etc. but everything will still be open if I don`t get something to ramble over them. Do you know of an evergreen climber? Thanks for the info on Japonica that ties in with what I remember.
Thanks Bathgate.

Clematis Armandii is evergreen...I have one which blooms prolifically in early spring and after blooming sends out new shoots ready to bear next year's bloom. It's scented and there are a few to choose from.

It depends how big these arches will be, and how strong - if you have an arch or fence say, 6 feet high, neither will take the weight of a very large climber for long. Jasmine officinale, clematis montana, clematis armandii, wisteria varieties all get 35 feet tall by about 12 feet wide over time. If you planted one to grow over an old outbuilding,that would hold up, but a slim archway won't.

Some attention must also be given as to how a plant actually climbs - some are twiners, and they need a solid, strong trellis section to twine around, except for smaller clematis varieties, which need thinner supports to cling to (as in bamboo canes, that sort of thickness). Others may be self supporting, once they've got going - Hydrangea anomala for example, but that needs partial to shady conditions.

Trachelospermum jasminoides is an evergreen climbing plant with fragrant flowers around June - but it gets over 30 feet in time and will need a trellis to fix itself to.

There are climbing roses that people often use over arches or on fences - they will need wires or something you can tie them to as they grow.

Thanks for that Bamboo, you`re very knowledgeable, I always over engineer anything I make, however , maybe I should go back to grape vines. I must say though my Montana was on an arch far more insubstantial than one would expect, I just used to go through each summer with a hedge trimmer and keep the path open.

Well if you hack them back every year, then it shouldn't be as much of a problem - but do that at the wrong time (depending on the plant) and you may lose flowers the following year.

No one has mentioned the benefit of home-made wine!

Thanks Bamboo
Bulbaholic, good call!

Ha, good point Bulbaholic - I didn't think of it cos I don't drink, luckily I don't like alcohol. Good job too, I'm addicted to nicotine, if I liked alcohol, I'd probably be a lush by now...

Depending where you are in France, you might consider a Solandra. This year I bought one on e-Bay from a nursery in France. It is evergreen and has huge yellow flowers. I have seen the Solandra grandiflora around here, and it will get huge. A friend used it for an arbor and it looked very different. From seeing what the people around here do to maintain their grapevines, it looks like a lot work to get good grapes - all the pruning and spraying.

Wylieinthia I will have a look for Solandra it sounds ideal. Thanks.