Wendy, I posted on the old thread too hoping it might pop back up top, but it doesn't look like it's going to work.
Congratulations!!!!

I posted pictures there too. I don't get it the algorithm.

I wonder if our climate had anything to do with our recent successes. I am in northern MA. I pay attention to the minimum winter temps. We usually have a string of -20 degree days or at least a few scattered. This past winter, the lowest I saw was -13 or -15 for a day or two. Technically, that would be zone 6.

Congratulations, wendyb! I just went to the older thread and saw your pictures! Oh, I want one too. I have a similar place by the driveway that's quite shady and I'd love to have one growing up one of the trees there! Will you post photos of the flowers?

We're all enjoying your victory!

Leslie

I saw an incredible one, must have been 30' up a tree and quite thick and dense, on Saturday at one of the RI Garden Conservancy tours. It was the "moonlight" variety, in full glorious bloom. The hosts said it was 8 years old, but at the end of 5 years was only about 2' up the tree and then really leaped between years 5 and 8. I didn't ask when it started blooming. They're in z. 6.

I planted 3 tiny ones last summer of the variegated Hydrangea anomala Firefly variety, but I don't think any of them came back this spring. :(

It's really beautiful! Thanks for posting the photos; it's especially cool that you documented the plant over the years.

Good heavens! What will happen when it reaches the top of that tree? I can imagine it hopping over to the next tree, and the next tree, and the next tree....

You'll have a very beautiful woods there.

Claire

Actually, it did already hop to a neighbor tree! One of the new vines went sideways instead of upwards and attached itself to a maple about 2 feet away that is about 6" diameter. It is only about a foot up the tree. I am trying to decide if I went to let it keep going or pull it off.

Initially I had to do a lot of training to get the vines to go up the pine. Mostly they do it by themselves now. I found a couple rooted to the ground and the maple. Anyone want one? I can pot them up and ship them in the fall. Btw, this one is 'Moonlight' too.

I do worry a bit about the pine's health long term. If it really gets to the top eventually and is going all around the bark, won't it strangle the tree eventually like oriental bittersweet? What makes these vines more compatible?

I think you can see the neighbor tree vine in this picture. If you click on it and zoom it max, in the lower left hand corner, the maple (actually more like 5 feet away) has the same silvery leaf on the bottom of it.

Well, here's the bloom. Not enough to get super excited about now, but what a tease for future years!

Beautiful! The foliage itself is enough to get excited about, and the flowers are icing on the cake.

The whole tree is going to look like it's been frosted! Lovely!

Claire

For over 20 years I've been wanting to grow something up the telephone pole that's right at the corner of our property, made all the more visible because it leeeeaaaaanss out. I'm inspired.
Thanks!
MT

6 years from the date of planting, 30+' tall.
Last year she had 1 (one) and only first bloom. This year all 15 lower feet were blooming ;-))))))
Well worth to wait!