Best Plants for Covering Fences

Climbing Plants & Wall Shrubs Hide A Lot of Fence for a Small Footprint

In many cosy gardens, the vertical surface area of fence is larger than the soil surface!

Putting a hedge in front of a fence has the advantage of keeping the fence itself free for maintenance, and there is no risk of plants getting too heavy and shortening its lifespan.
But in a smaller garden, that means sacrificing too much floor space.

Your main options for covering a fence with plants are climbers and “wall shrubs”.

Best Climbing Plants for Covering a Fence

When covering a fence, most people want evergreen plants that are reasonably quick growers.

• Trachelospermum jasminoides, commonly known as Star Jasmine. Does very well on North facing fences under open sky.
• Trachelospermum asiaticum, Asiatic Jasmine. Most people consider it slightly less attractive than Star Jasmine due to its smaller flowers, but it’s the better choice for the coldest inland Northern & Scottish regions
• “Evergreen” honeysuckle varieties. Honeysuckle is famous for its flowers, but Mint Crisp also has lovely mottled leaves to maintain interest almost year round; depending on your region, evergreen honeysuckles may be semi-evergreen, meaning they have leaves for most of the year.
• Clematis armandii, with its large, lush leaves, is the best evergreen clematis for hiding things. Other evergreen clematis species like Clematis cirrhosa ‘Jingle Bells’ will also work: the leaves aren’t as lovely, but they do flower in Winter.

Best Wall Shrubs for Covering a Fence

These woody shrubs or small trees have good ornamental value, and respond well to being trained on wires up against a vertical surface in much the same way as a climber.

• Pyracantha – needs to be pruned into “storeys” tied flat along wires as an espalier to get the full flowering and then bright berries effect, which is simply one of the best.
• Cotoneasters – The most famous is Rockspray Cotoneaster, staple of urban plantings, but if you have support wires then you may as well use the superior franchetii or simsonii in your garden.
• Mimosa, Acacia dealbata – ideal for making the most out of a hot South facing fence, prune after the last frost to keep it in bounds.

Doesn't Ivy Destroy Wooden Fences?

Despite it being a great choice for hiding brick and metal, most people choose not to grow Ivy on a wooden fence due to its structurally invasive growth habit.
But the argument against growing ivy on wooden fences is not as simple as ivy causing damage.

Ivy tends to have an “overall preserving” effect on wooden fences: fusing with them, growing a fairly sturdy cage of woody vines through and over them.
The evergreen leaves protect from the elements, and the strong vines support the parts of the fence at the same time as pushing in between them.
As long as the ivy is healthy and trimmed a bit to reduce top-heavy weight and to allow light down to the base, this living arrangement will outlast fence panels without ivy.

The problem comes when the ivy is cut back to the base or killed, and the whole thing collapses.

Virginia & Chinese Creeper Are Not Evergreen, nor Low Maintenance!

Parthenocissus varieties are extremely vigorous, too much for most gardens, and not evergreen.
We almost didn't include them on this list for those reasons.

However, when you absolutely positively have to cover everything and are happy to trade evergreen leaves for a creeper's blazing Autumn colours, accept no substitutes.

Once they're established, they will require hacking back a couple of times a year to keep them under control in most situations.

What if I can't use plants to cover my fence?

Maybe you have no soil, no time, or no permission to grow plants to cover an ugly fence, in which case have a look at these methods of covering a fence without plants.