Happy New Year!!!!

Have some questions for the upcoming 2008 season. Last year we found a nursery that had Cardinal vine and planted that with Yellow Black Eyed Susan vine. It was OK!! They climbed on a raised 4 foot by 4 foot trellis on our deck. The hummers did go to the Cardinal vine but prefered the red salvia and the black and blue salvia that were in pots on the deck. A few questions I see there is a Cypress Vine both a mix and a red version. Has anyone tried this and how full were the plants on the trellis.

We also planted blue Morning Glory on another trellis system that system was 8 feet by 9 feet and the Morning Glories mixed with the Honey Suckle turned out beautiful. I have seen Red Morning Glory advertised in the catalogs for 2008 has anyone trieds these and how did they turn out?

For 2008 we are open to any nice growing annual vines that really produce the flowers on both the deck trellis and the other one. They don't have to attract Hummers however that would be nice, because we will have Red Salvia and Black and blue salvia and feeders to keep them fed plus all the perennials in the gardens to keep them happy and coming back.

We are in zone five in SE Michigan and the plants will get about 6 to 8 hours of sun light.

Looking forward to hearing about everyones suggestions and ideas!!

Thanks and THINK SPRING!!!!!!!

Lary

Moonflower might be a night-blooming vine to think about. Looks like white Morning Glory. Scent is very attractive for some folks. Also an annual.

You might try starting some things from seed, get a head start. I always bought my Cardinal plants, so they got bloom time, were growing well before the end of summer.

Clematis is a great vine, comes in many colors and various flower shapes. It is a perennial, so it can take a couple years to really get going well. However the flower reward is worth it, in my opinion. There are 3 bloom periods, which the different named plants can use. Some are early season, others mid-season, while others bloom in late summer, early fall. Just check the labels, so you know which time to expect bloom, when to trim the vines back. Lots of good information on the Clematis forum here on GW.
I have had great luck with the clematis plants with Polish names, Pope John Paul II, and a purple one, can't remember it. Terrific bloom over long time period, starting the first year. I was pretty surprised at that. Has just gotten even better since!