A Gardeners Forum Forums Gardening Reference Gardening in 2006 Virginia Creeper -vs- Native Grape---Can't decide,can you help??

I would like to put some vines in to cover an arbor. Can't find particlar info on either.
Do both of these vines have creeping rhizomes(?) or is there another type of vine that would stay put.
How do I keep them under control??
I don't want vines come up through my patio slabs 5 years from now
BTW the grapes I have right now have foliage right from the ground and up. Do VC have full growth like this, or do their leaves start 1-2' from the ground?

I would not recommend virginia creeper. It is one of the most invasive plants I have on my property and it is VERY hard to contain. It will strangle bushes and trees and I even have it sprouting in the middle of my lawn. It also can cause a very painful rash if you are sensitive to it, which I found out the hard way. I don't know much about other vines but good luck with your search.

Joanne

Thanks for the heads up Joanne I was seriously considering VC.
My grapes seem to be "wandering",but only a little bit. Maybe they are more easily contained.???I was really wanting a long,full vine to cover the area. (In zone 3 I seem to be limited) Thanks again.

there are plenty of nice vines available that aren't invasive.

what zone are you in? and what are the sun light conditions that the vine will be in (sunny or shady)?

I am in zone 3, but zone 4 is OK for us as long as we mulch well for the winter. My arbor is on the south side of my house, it would get about 3/4 sun each day.
Tell me more about vines that are less invasive

wisteria, ramblin' rose, morning glory, porcelain vine, akebia, schizophragma,

Morning glories

They are in so many colors and varietys now a days.

You can pull them off each season.. Not too bad to control.

dodge

I agree with everything said about VC..
Although it has beautiful color in the fall time,
that's it's only, and I mean, ONLY saving grace..
I have that stuff too, and like said above by Joanne, it's everywhere...

The Porceline Vine I heard is reallllly invasive, and grows almost a foot a day some say..
*Plus the birds eat the berries, and either drop them or poop them somewhere's and you end up with alot of baby PV's allllllll over the place too..

I personally would take the edible grapes over anything... what a way to have a cover for an arbor... with grapes to eat too...

*(Cucumbers are a great climber...
so are peas *edible and sweet*, annual morning glories, cardinal vine, or purple hyacinth bean are good too.)*

Even Birdhouse Gourds...
I had alot of fun with those...
The vine climbed farrrr *I ended up having to snip them so they'd stop actually* and I got a bunch *5* gourds *they take 120 days to grow a crop.. I have short weather/season here too but was happy to get 5, I still haven't done anything with them, but they were a great new plant to grow for me*

one side note, if I cut or snipped the ends, they were a bit stinky... but if you just want yours to grow, you'd never smell it..
and the white flowers were gorgeous!!!**