Trumpet vines and the best ways to deal with them
Hi Sue, Hope you are well. I was hoping you could help me on how to rid a garden and lawn of trumpet vines. Trying to create a wildflower garden, but the vines are growing like crazy! I’m thinking chemical warfare! Thanks. — Sue
The trumpet vine/Trumpet creeper (Campsis radicans) is an easily grown perennial vine. It is multistemmed, woody, deciduous and clinging.
Native to the southeastern United States, it has naturalized to more western and northern areas. Hardy in Zones 4 to 9, this plant will grow in poor soil, but needs to have well-drained soil. The trumpet vine will quickly spread under ideal conditions. It is considered invasive in many areas of the United States.
On the plus side, the flowers are quite attractive, bloom in yellow, orange, or red, and attract hummingbirds. The trumpet vine is considered a good pollinator plant.
It will grow in part shade but produces the most blooms in full sun.
Negative aspects include rampant growth, roots that can damage foundations, and the tendency to strangle trees if it’s allowed to grow up them. The vines have aerial roots that attach to buildings as well as trees since the plant prefers growing on some sort of support trellis.
Unfortunately, the best and perhaps most effective way to kill the vine is to
cut back the vines and dig out the roots. I read that vinegar solutions (50-50, vinegar to water) may kill the upper part of the plant but generally will not reach the roots.
I saw one suggestion to use salt to kill it but since this makes the area unsuitable for planting anything, it is not a good solution, Chemical herbicides containing a liquid triclopyr formulation are listed as effective but I cannot advocate its use.
If you are considering planting the trumpet vine, confine it to a container, or select a less vigorous option. It is reported that the Chinese trumpet vine (Campsis grandiflora) is a non-native
but smaller and not quite as aggressive substitute. One native alternative is Trumpet honeysuckle (Lonicera sempervirens).
Garden reference books
I enjoy reading your garden articles published on Saturdays in the Morning Call newspaper. I would like to know where I can purchase 2 books, (1 for shrubbery & 1 for perennial flowers) pertaining to their maintenance (when & how to prune, fertilize etc.) Thank you for your help.
— Charlotte Snyder
Quite honestly, while I love books
and own way too many, I frequently find that an internet source, a reliable one, is the quickest way to research information on plant care. When I do this I usually search for extension offices (add ext as part of the search field) or use college botany/agricultural sites like Rutgers, Cornell, Penn State. Plant association sites, like the American Daffodil Society, also offer excellent advice.
I do have a few go-to books:
The Perennial Care Manual: A Plantby-Plant Guide: What to Do & When to Do It (9781603421515) by Nancy J. Ondra,
The Well-Tended Perennial Garden:
The Essential Guide to Planting and Pruning Techniques, Third Edition, by Tracy DiSabato-Aust.
Taylor’s Guide to Shrubs: How to Select and Grow More than 500 Ornamental and Useful Shrubs for Privacy, Ground Covers, and Specimen Plantings (9780618004379)
If any reader has a favorite book on pruning perennials and shrubs, please let me know.
In our garden
Despite the many weeds, our garden has taken on beautiful fall colors. The dogwood is full of birds and squirrels picking off the fruits. We’ve moved some things into storage, ordered covers for the loungers I bought this year, and cleared the driveway so that we can schedule our firewood for the season.
My firewood storage tent from last year did not survive the record snowfalls. I have a small group of volunteers scheduled to take it down this Sunday and then, on a later weekend, put up a new, hopefully sturdier one to keep the wood dry.
Fran is moving in the ponytail palm from the deck this weekend. It will reside in the entry under a skylight for the winter. I neglected my amaryllis bulbs so I will have to buy new ones, but then, new plants are part of the pleasure of gardening as much as successfully keeping the old ones healthy.