SiLOSSiLOS

Privacy that isn't a wall

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trellis panel
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1How it climbs decides what it needs

Clinging vines (Virginia creeper, Boston ivy, climbing hydrangea) attach directly to a flat surface with tiny root-like holdfasts — they don't need a trellis, and they'll happily grip masonry. Grabbing vines (clematis, grapes) need wire or twine to wind their tendrils around. Twining vines (wisteria, honeysuckle) wrap their whole stem around a post or wire, and each species always twines the same direction, so a stake pointed the wrong way just fights the plant. Sprawling vines (climbing roses) don't climb at all on their own — they lean, and need to be tied up by hand.

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2Match the support to the climber

A clinging vine on a freestanding trellis just falls off; a twining or grabbing vine on a bare wall with nothing to wind around just piles up at the base. Read what kind of climber it is before buying the trellis, not after.

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3Staggering beats a single row

A single row of identical shrubs planted in a line reads as a hedge (and shows every gap if one plant struggles); staggering two rows, or mixing heights and species, reads as a planted screen and hides gaps as it fills in.

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