Toughing it out on the trellis throughout winter’s gloom, evergreen climbing plants bring year-round colour and contrast to your vertical spaces, and do so without a fuss. Grow these hard-as-nails climbers on a wall, pergola or even in large pots for patio and balcony interest. Explore our extensive collection of evergreen climbers to find the perfect plant; whether you’re looking for flowers or foliage, quick coverage or shade-tolerance, fabulous fragrance or wildlife appeal – make it evergreen.
Climbers grown by specialists at the height of their game
What does it take to grow the strongest and best climbing plants in the show tent? Organic fertilisers, natural pest control and years of dedication from Mollie, our expert grower in Worcestershire. Professionally pruned and checked by hand, they’re guaranteed to put on a gold standard display in your garden, too.
Need help picking?
What are evergreen climbers?
Evergreen climbers are those that hold their leaves throughout the year, rather than shedding them for the winter. This gives you a plant that offers genuine year-round interest, as opposed to something which only impresses for a season or two. Some evergreen climbers even flower in the winter, adding much-needed colour in what is otherwise typically a grey and gloomy time of year. These plants are particularly impactful given their vertical aspect – there are many evergreen plants out there, but few that can scale the heights that evergreen climbers can.
What are our favourite evergreen climbers?
For this, we’re going to break it down into our favourite flowering evergreen climbers and our favourite foliage evergreen climbers. On the flowering front, it’s hard to look past Clematis cirrhosa ‘Freckles’, with its paint-splashed petals in winter and glossy green leaves. It also holds the RHS Award of Garden Merit as well as Plants for Pollinators status. From a foliage perspective, we’re going to opt for Hedera colchica 'Dentata Variegata' (variegated ivy) due to its lovely cream-margined leaves – oh, and the fact it’s another RHS award winner.
Caring for evergreen climbers
Evergreen climbers are generally nice and easy to care for; they’ll need regular watering throughout their first growing season (or two) to aid establishment, while beyond this watering will primarily be needed during hot, dry spells. Certain evergreen climbers, like ivies, are more shade-tolerant than others, while other species, such as Clematis armandii, for instance, don’t require any routine pruning. Make sure to check out a plant’s individual product page for more detailed care instructions. As a rule of thumb, moist but well-drained, loamy soil is preferable, with climbers grown in containers requiring more watering than those grown in the open ground.
