Non Poisonous Climbers

[Finchtastic]

Looking for a name of a non poisonous climber, have Ivy in the garden but dont know what kind it is.

Any suggestions?

[CandoAviary]

I love the passion flower vine. It is beautiful and edible (even by us)



Here it is covering the entire pergola and starting to cover the first story roof

It does die back in winter to resprout again in the spring. I let the Gulf frittilaries (butterflies) lay their eggs on it. The catterpillars hatch and munch away only to later emerge into real beauties. I have had over a thousand butterfilies in my yard at times

[Ursula]

They are beautiful, Candace! (Both, passion flower and butterflies.) I have a passion flower as part of my tattoo on my left arm...

But I'm not sure that a passion flower vine would grow in Ireland...

[G8love4finches]

What lovely vines and flowers!....Just beautiful!!

[Sally]

I have no idea if passion flower vines are available to you. Many varieties are tropical, and so you would not want those. Passiflora incarnata is the native vine, it is native in Texas at least. It is hardy--I planted five of them on my front fence last year, neglected to mulch them properly before our first freeze, and they all came back just fine this year. It is also known as the Maypop passion vine. I would think you could use honeysuckle vines too, there are many varieties (these usually need a good support). How about trumpet vines? They attract hummingbirds in my area, so should be bird-safe. Someone who lives in your part of the world would be able to give you better advice on what will grow.

[Finchtastic]

WOW those passion flowers are just beautiful and would bring great colour to the aviary. But I think you guys are right about it not doing well in Ireland.
We used to have honey suckle in my old houses back garden so I think maybe a re introduction would do well. My mother always says how she wished we had the honey suckle on the wall like our old house.

Thanks again for the replies

[CandoAviary]

I am not sure how cold it gets where you are... probably too cold but possibly if you plant in a sheltered spot ??(covering the root stock with mulch to protect)
some strains are very cold hardy. Even here they die back with first frost but resprout in spring. they are fast growers so even a short warm season can host some beautiful flowers and fruits. Honeysuckle is good and smells great!

Quote from plantcare.com "The passion vine prefers a frost-free climate. There are some cultivars that can take temperatures into the upper 20′s (F) without serious damage. The “Blue Passion Vine” is pretty cold hardy and salt tolerant but the plant does not grow well in intense summer heat. The yellow passion fruit is tropical and isn’t fond of frost. The purple and yellow forms both need protection from the wind."

[Danyl]

Hi not sure if this will be of a help, i have used this list when planting real plants in my aviary and so far no problems with it... I also have the basic Ivy in there, only small for not but hopefully will grow.. That i got from B&Q 4 pots of ivy for £5..

http://www.finchniche.com/a-aviaryplants.php

[annague]

Finchtastic -- if you want a large, tough and attractive vine you could also go for Wisteria.

I had one that I thought was dead so I took the trunk (it just broke off) and stuck it in the ground for another vine to grow up -- and it ended up rooting and growing from that stump!

Candace, (sigh) you sound like you live in the Garden of Eden...! Your vines and your butterflies are just beautiful!