CLIMBERS

›SOL ANUM CRISPUM ‘GLASNEVIN’

If you’re looking for a hale and hearty climber, try this one, but be prepared to put manners on it, as it can turn into a bit of thug — nothing a good spring clipping can’t take care of. I love it for its clusters of potato-like purple-blue flowers with yellow centres, and its vigour. It’s not a self-clinging climber, so you will need to support it as it grows. When it’s established, you could try growing a clematis through it. Grow in full sunshine for maximum flowering. Height: 4–8m Conditions: Sun; moist, well-drained, neutral to alkaline soil

›TRACHELOSPERMUM JASMINOIDES (STAR JASMINE)

Star jasmine produces a profusion of highly scented, sweet little white star-shaped flowers. I have an abiding love of this plant since it got me out of a hole one year at the Chelsea Flower Show. It is very well-behaved — it looks neat with or without its flowers; its leaves are nicely shaped, glossy dark green, and it’s a self-twining evergreen climber. Plant in sunshine on a south-facing, sheltered wall. Height: 4–8m Conditions: Sun; fertile, well-drained soil