Climber Plants: Training and Pruning Tips

If you are one of those people who love greenery and everything about them, you might find it interesting planting some climbing plants. These plants are suitable for both small and large outdoor spaces as can be used for different purposes and in different places, however, there are some things you should know before planting them. Since they are growing pretty faster, climbing plants can quickly clothe a fence or wall, meaning that pruning must be on top of your list before doing anything else. Careful training and pruning on first planting will help your climber plants grow healthy and turn into the most attractive plant on Earth that will cover your wall or fence efficiently. On that way maintaining your climbers will become a piece of cake.

Putting up Supports

Once you have chosen the type of climber plants from the store, before planting them, you must place a support. In order to allow your climbers to grow freely against walls and fences, it is recommended to fix the supports about 5cm away from the wall and fence (depending on where do you want to plant them).

The possible supports can be:

• Wooden battens that can be raised from the wall surface, with the bottom 30cm above soil level in order to prevent rotting.
• The second option you have are the taut horizontal/vertical wires held by vine eyes. The space between them should be 30-45cm with the lowest wire 30cm above soil level.
• Free standing screens of post and plastic mesh, post and trellis panels, post and wire are another options you can use as a support for your climbers.

When planting, experts say that you must avoid planting the climbers right against the support, as this will create a rain shadow. If you are thinking to plant the climbers against a solid structure like wall or fence, leave at least 45cm gap between the plant and the wall, otherwise, a 20-30cm gap is just enough.

Initial Training And Pruning

• After you have put up your support, plant your climber about 30-45cm from the base of the wall, so that there is enough room for root development.
• Take your scissors and cut off the plastic ties that hold the climber right to its bamboo cane.
• Slip the bamboo canes under the wires in order to hold them in place and adjust the positioning to create a shape and tie the stems and canes to the wire supports.
• Once done, use secateurs to prune off any weak growth that doesn’t contribute to the main framework.