Thanks for your message. Yeah I don’t understand why so many choose to ruin their brickwork unnecessarily, and especially when it’s harder to drill into brick.
This is exactly what I was looking for, thank you. Nice simple instructions with no jargon. I've ordered my vine eyes and wire and hope to install it over the weekend.
Hi Raja. Many thanks for watching and your question. You can drill the holes into either the mortar or brick, entirely up to you. Going into mortar is easier to drill but if the mortar is quite old then it does become crumbly and less stable. In that instance then drilling into brick work is a better option to create a stronger fix. Drill the holes to the same width as the rawl plug or anchor system that you are using, making sure to drill the hole a bit deeper. Once the fixings are in then screw in the vine eyes for a secure hold. All the best with training your climbing plants 🌸🌼
Hi Steve. Thanks for the message. There are a couple of reasons I drill into the mortar. First is that it’s actually stronger than brick and using the mortar as a guide makes it easy to get the holes in level. Bricks, when they get damp ingress, will blow after a period of time. Lastly, if you change your mind at some point and don’t have a climbing plant then you can easily fill the mortar again and make it look as it was, where as if you drill into the bricks you then need to fill with mortar to seal them. Obviously other people do things other ways but that’s my rationale. All the best, Ian
Thanks for a clear video. What do you recommend when the wisteria gets mature and very heavy? How should the weight be supported for branches 30 - 50 mm diameter?
Thanks for the message. We had an old Wisteria where I worked previously and still used vine eyes and wire to support, albeit heavy duty wrought iron types and thick gauge wire and strainers.
Thanks, this has been really useful as are all your videos. I was just wondering if you had experience of growing climbers in containers rather than in beds. I'm looking to grow a climber along wires fixed to an old Victorian large brick garden wall but there's no soil nearby. Thinking a trough along the wall with 2 or 3 different plants that can interwine but not sure on depth of trough that would be required for that kind of set up. South facing wall so expect they'll need a lot of watering. Thanks in advance and no problem if you have no advice on this one. Michael
Thanks for your message. I suppose the first thing to ask is which type of climber/s you are wanting to grow. How much cover do you need the plants to provide. Simply, the larger the trough you can get or make the better and the easier it will be to keep the plants growing. Have you thought about making your own planter from say sleepers. Make sure to fill the trough with a soil based planting medium such as John Innes number 3 or similar.
@@diyhomeandgardening Thanks Ian, I hadn't thought of making a trough perhaps that is a possibility. I was looking at a trough around 100-120 litre capacity. I'm planning to grow a Bluebell Creeper (Sollya Heterophylla) and an evergreen clematis and perhaps a third plant. The wall has a half fence above it - so I think in total probably around 5-6 sq metres I'd like to cover eventually with the climbers. I haven't had much luck with container growing in the past. But I will use John Innes 3 for this!
@@MNH73. Dolly’s need full sun in a sheltered position to survive winters in U.K. They hate the cold wet to their roots. Look at Clematis ‘Avalanche’ or ‘Early sensation’ for a more compact evergreen clematis that produces masses of flowers. Some of the smaller patio climbing Roses work well. Also, Trachelospermum jasminoides for a great evergreen climber with scented flowers. Perennial sweet pea for a country garden feel, although they do die back come winter. If it was me I would make a planter the length of the wall, spacing the climbers accordingly to be roughly 1 per fence panel wide. You could then plant up the rest of the area with smaller shrubs and perennials. Make sure to feed the plants and keep a check on watering for successful container gardening.
@@diyhomeandgardening Thanks for sharing your knowledge - that's great. I bought the bluebell creeper without reading up about it first but I hope it might survive on south facing and sheltered wall (on the south coast). The plant recommendations all look great - I hadn't thought of a patio climbing rose at all but think that could be perfect. Not sure I have the skills to make a trough but I will try to source something that runs most of the length of the wall (about 2.5 m). Thanks again - I will let you know how the project goes
@@MNH73. Yes keep me informed, love to see how it turns out. If you are not that practical but want a planter that big then literally just stack 2 sleepers one on top of the other, front and back giving you 2.4m long. Join together with metal fixing plates from any diy place. Cut another sleeper into 4 pieces (2each end) and repeat the process. Join at corners with corner brackets. Line with weed fabric and fill with appropriate soil/compost mix.
Hi Jane. I secure one end of the wire to a vine eye and pull the wire tight as I move from one side to the other. Keep the wire taught as you work back and forth up the levels. If it’s easier then just secure a wire from the left vine eye to the right and secure both ends, repeating the process at each level of vine eyes. You can also by straining bolts which can make things easier if you are working by yourself. All the best 🛠️🌻
@@elizabeth17950 the thicker the wire the stronger it will be but it will also need a bit more tension to straighten it. You can always tension the wires and then check after a couple of days. The wire will be more flexible and also expand on a hotter day.
Hi Jane. Thanks for watching and the question. Basically you need to drill a hole that is just a bit deeper than the length of the rawl plug you are going to insert into the wall. Hammer the rawl plug into the hole and then screw the vine eye into that. Hope that helps 🪴🌸
@@elizabeth17950 I’m sure it will go fine. Just mark the first position and take your time to drill and plug the first one. Once you have done the first you will have the confidence to do the rest. I’m also on instagram under the same name so you can always contact me via there if you are struggling. All the best 🌸
NB: For longer runs, where perhaps you intend to have wisteria growing across a long wall (in my case a 10 metre span), use wire tensioners and what they call 'Vine Eyes to Drive' to lift the wire off the wall every metre along the length, which keeps the wire straight and taut. Ensure the start and end Vine Eyes with screw thread are deeply embedded in the brickwork as they are generally made of mild steel and will bend when pulled taut. NB: You may want to drill a few millimetres into the brickwork to locate the "Vine Eyes to Drive" which again, being made of mild steel, bend, so cannot easily be driven with a hammer into brickwork.
Exactly right. Vine eyes always need to be inserted so the full amount of thread is within the wall. You can get different thicknesses of vine eye and wire if you want a more robust set up.
No reason you can’t drill into bricks. My reason is that mortar is easier to drill into, and if I decide to move the supports at a later stage then the holes can be easily filled again to not show.
Really, really helpful as I'm planting wisteria to grow up the front of an English cottage. Might I ask two questions? First, if I have a large window that I'd like the vine to extend above (as you'd see in many English cottages), could I simply extend your wire set-up with additional eyes above the 6-foot window running horizontally - or run 2 parallel wires? Second, as the vine trunk eventually grows very thick and heavy, is your wire sufficient, or would people normally install a larger strap at that part of the trunk and attach to the wall? Cheers!
Firstly thanks for watching my video and for your message. For my wisteria I have run the wires below the window with separate wire support sections each side of the window. If I had space above then I would then run another section above. Having different support sections, in my opinion, is easier as you have less wire to contend with and it’s easier to get the wires tensioned. Secondly, provided you are using decent grade vine eyes and a heavy duty wire you shouldn’t have any issues with them supporting a mature Wisteria. As the wisteria stems mature and harden they too will provide support for the more juvenile growth. Good luck with your planting. If you want any more help please contact me.
@@diyhomeandgardening I'm sorry - I did think of another question that I thought I'd ask. When you run a section of wires above the top or bottom of a large window (meaning the wisteria is growing/hanging horizontally at those parts), would you simply run 2 parallel wires (or a large rectangle), or are you still doing your "S" pattern - but maybe running the "S" horizontally?
All the wires run horizontally into which you then tie the Wisteria. You can do each horizontal section separately, but by running the wire in a continuous, stretched, ‘S’ shape it means that less wire is used, less cuts are made and you have to make fewer finishing twists. The ‘S’ shape makes for less work but does mean that it becomes more of a 2 person job if you are working on a large ish area.
I’m actually not wanting to hang wisteria, I don’t think 🤔? It’s flowers that look like little trumpet heads. I wish I had the descriptive cards to tell you what they are. Can you tell me if that would work the same way? Or is that just for wisterias?
Hi. Thanks for your message. The training method would work just the same. Without seeing a picture I imagine that the climber you have is a Campsis. Does it drop its leaves during winter?
Campsis radicans is a very vigorous climber and needs a full sun position for it to flower well. As far as training is concerned: If you put up some strong supporting wires or frame and tie in the main stems of the Campsis where you want them to go then the plant will twine itself up the frame. They cling by themselves with roots that form on the stems. Once they are established they put on an amazing show of flower. I’ve also seen them grown as standards, forming a lovely tree like shape.
I’m so sorry to bother you, but I’m pretty ignorant with this kind of stuff. Can you tell me what you mean by growing as “standards”? We have two pots of them and they both have stem “climbers,” one more than the other.
@@sandrasamano8820. A standard has a clear vertical stem with a head of branches on the top. To create a standard from a Campsis you need to grow the stem up a cane or pole before you get to the desired height, at which point you allow the top growth to form. I’ve done a video on how to create a standard Fuchsia if you want to see what a standard looks like.
Not too sure what you mean exactly but it’s a simple job to carry out with just fairly basic tools required. If you don’t have a drill then hammer in vine eyes are available.
Thanks for your message. To tighten the wire you first of all need to secure one end and then thread the other end through all the eyelets of the vine eyes. As you work up each layer you need to pull to stretch and tighten the wire, before proceeding through the next layer. It’s pulling the wire whilst also threading through the next layer that can be a 2 person job. Once all the way to the top then a second pair of hands is also useful to keep tension on the wire whilst bending and twisting the unattached end, to secure in final position. Hope this helps you. Good luck. By the way, what climber are you training, always interested to find out who is doing what I their garden. All the best, Ian
Sorry for the stupid question but I’m buying my supplies and I can’t figure out for the life of me what size of vine eyes I need to buy. I have 8x40mm wall plugs. What size did you use?
I used exactly that size. I think from memory they are the blue coloured ones. Make sure you drill a little deeper than the Rawplug depth to allow for debris.
@@diyhomeandgardening sorry I meant what size of vine eyes to fit those wall plugs? (Total diy novice person here and the screwfix website is stressing me out 😂)
@@sarahschneider7435. I used the vine eyes from Screwfix before but I think they are only about 40mm in length, although very strong. Toolstation also do vine eyes which are longer but thinner gauge so not as strong. As you are using decent sized rawlplugs then the screwfix ones would be a good fit but will make the wires sit close to the wall.
Finally someone who knows that you DO NOT DRILL into the masonry units, but into the mortar. Excellent!
Thanks for your message. Yeah I don’t understand why so many choose to ruin their brickwork unnecessarily, and especially when it’s harder to drill into brick.
In some cases, (walls with old mortar, for example, where the mortar would just crumble with drilling) it can be better to drill into brick.
@@djfirkins. True, and that is where common sense should hopefully prevail 😂
@@diyhomeandgardening common sense: often not as prevalent as one might expect 🤣🤓
@@djfirkins 😂😂Definitely true. Some of my customers amaze me with things they ask.
This is exactly what I was looking for, thank you. Nice simple instructions with no jargon. I've ordered my vine eyes and wire and hope to install it over the weekend.
Thanks a lot for the comment and I’m glad you found the video useful. Good luck for the weekend project.
this was incredibly helpful, thank you!
Many thanks for your message, very much appreciated and so pleased that the video has helped you.
Hope you have some great climbing plants growing. 🌸
Really helpful thanks. Off to get my vine eyes!
Excellent stuff. Have fun tying your plants up.
Thank you for sharing your expertise, this is helpful information for me, very clearly demonstrated and good clear narration, off to the toolshed 👍😁
Many thanks for your feedback, glad you found the video useful.
Does the vine screw goes into the mortar or brick? Any differences? Good and helpful video.
Hi Raja. Many thanks for watching and your question.
You can drill the holes into either the mortar or brick, entirely up to you.
Going into mortar is easier to drill but if the mortar is quite old then it does become crumbly and less stable. In that instance then drilling into brick work is a better option to create a stronger fix.
Drill the holes to the same width as the rawl plug or anchor system that you are using, making sure to drill the hole a bit deeper. Once the fixings are in then screw in the vine eyes for a secure hold.
All the best with training your climbing plants 🌸🌼
Very helpful tips Ian thanks so much have subscribed.
Many thanks for your comment. I’m glad you found it helpful and have subscribed.
Nice one, cheers
Many thanks. Much appreciated
Very useful video, thank you! - just wondering why you're drilling into mortar rather than brick?
Hi Steve. Thanks for the message.
There are a couple of reasons I drill into the mortar. First is that it’s actually stronger than brick and using the mortar as a guide makes it easy to get the holes in level. Bricks, when they get damp ingress, will blow after a period of time. Lastly, if you change your mind at some point and don’t have a climbing plant then you can easily fill the mortar again and make it look as it was, where as if you drill into the bricks you then need to fill with mortar to seal them.
Obviously other people do things other ways but that’s my rationale. All the best, Ian
Thanks for a clear video. What do you recommend when the wisteria gets mature and very heavy? How should the weight be supported for branches 30 - 50 mm diameter?
Thanks for the message. We had an old Wisteria where I worked previously and still used vine eyes and wire to support, albeit heavy duty wrought iron types and thick gauge wire and strainers.
Thank you so much :-)
Glad you found the video useful.
Thanks, this has been really useful as are all your videos. I was just wondering if you had experience of growing climbers in containers rather than in beds. I'm looking to grow a climber along wires fixed to an old Victorian large brick garden wall but there's no soil nearby. Thinking a trough along the wall with 2 or 3 different plants that can interwine but not sure on depth of trough that would be required for that kind of set up. South facing wall so expect they'll need a lot of watering. Thanks in advance and no problem if you have no advice on this one. Michael
Thanks for your message.
I suppose the first thing to ask is which type of climber/s you are wanting to grow. How much cover do you need the plants to provide.
Simply, the larger the trough you can get or make the better and the easier it will be to keep the plants growing.
Have you thought about making your own planter from say sleepers.
Make sure to fill the trough with a soil based planting medium such as John Innes number 3 or similar.
@@diyhomeandgardening Thanks Ian, I hadn't thought of making a trough perhaps that is a possibility. I was looking at a trough around 100-120 litre capacity. I'm planning to grow a Bluebell Creeper (Sollya Heterophylla) and an evergreen clematis and perhaps a third plant. The wall has a half fence above it - so I think in total probably around 5-6 sq metres I'd like to cover eventually with the climbers. I haven't had much luck with container growing in the past. But I will use John Innes 3 for this!
@@MNH73. Dolly’s need full sun in a sheltered position to survive winters in U.K. They hate the cold wet to their roots.
Look at Clematis ‘Avalanche’ or ‘Early sensation’ for a more compact evergreen clematis that produces masses of flowers.
Some of the smaller patio climbing Roses work well. Also, Trachelospermum jasminoides for a great evergreen climber with scented flowers.
Perennial sweet pea for a country garden feel, although they do die back come winter.
If it was me I would make a planter the length of the wall, spacing the climbers accordingly to be roughly 1 per fence panel wide. You could then plant up the rest of the area with smaller shrubs and perennials.
Make sure to feed the plants and keep a check on watering for successful container gardening.
@@diyhomeandgardening Thanks for sharing your knowledge - that's great. I bought the bluebell creeper without reading up about it first but I hope it might survive on south facing and sheltered wall (on the south coast). The plant recommendations all look great - I hadn't thought of a patio climbing rose at all but think that could be perfect. Not sure I have the skills to make a trough but I will try to source something that runs most of the length of the wall (about 2.5 m). Thanks again - I will let you know how the project goes
@@MNH73. Yes keep me informed, love to see how it turns out.
If you are not that practical but want a planter that big then literally just stack 2 sleepers one on top of the other, front and back giving you 2.4m long. Join together with metal fixing plates from any diy place. Cut another sleeper into 4 pieces (2each end) and repeat the process. Join at corners with corner brackets. Line with weed fabric and fill with appropriate soil/compost mix.
How do you strain the wire please?
Hi Jane.
I secure one end of the wire to a vine eye and pull the wire tight as I move from one side to the other.
Keep the wire taught as you work back and forth up the levels.
If it’s easier then just secure a wire from the left vine eye to the right and secure both ends, repeating the process at each level of vine eyes.
You can also by straining bolts which can make things easier if you are working by yourself.
All the best 🛠️🌻
OK thank you. That is very clear. I expect the thicker the wire the less chance it will droop with weight. Many thanks. Regards
@@elizabeth17950 the thicker the wire the stronger it will be but it will also need a bit more tension to straighten it.
You can always tension the wires and then check after a couple of days. The wire will be more flexible and also expand on a hotter day.
Sorry, how far to drill into the joint, that bit was skipped. I am real amateur. Thank you.
Hi Jane.
Thanks for watching and the question.
Basically you need to drill a hole that is just a bit deeper than the length of the rawl plug you are going to insert into the wall.
Hammer the rawl plug into the hole and then screw the vine eye into that.
Hope that helps 🪴🌸
@diyhomeandgardening Thank you so much. Am going to try this at the weekend. Full of trepidation but will try my best. Regards
@@elizabeth17950 I’m sure it will go fine. Just mark the first position and take your time to drill and plug the first one. Once you have done the first you will have the confidence to do the rest.
I’m also on instagram under the same name so you can always contact me via there if you are struggling.
All the best 🌸
NB: For longer runs, where perhaps you intend to have wisteria growing across a long wall (in my case a 10 metre span), use wire tensioners and what they call 'Vine Eyes to Drive' to lift the wire off the wall every metre along the length, which keeps the wire straight and taut. Ensure the start and end Vine Eyes with screw thread are deeply embedded in the brickwork as they are generally made of mild steel and will bend when pulled taut. NB: You may want to drill a few millimetres into the brickwork to locate the "Vine Eyes to Drive" which again, being made of mild steel, bend, so cannot easily be driven with a hammer into brickwork.
Exactly right. Vine eyes always need to be inserted so the full amount of thread is within the wall. You can get different thicknesses of vine eye and wire if you want a more robust set up.
Thanks. Is there any reason for not drilling into bricks rather than mortar?
No reason you can’t drill into bricks. My reason is that mortar is easier to drill into, and if I decide to move the supports at a later stage then the holes can be easily filled again to not show.
Really, really helpful as I'm planting wisteria to grow up the front of an English cottage. Might I ask two questions? First, if I have a large window that I'd like the vine to extend above (as you'd see in many English cottages), could I simply extend your wire set-up with additional eyes above the 6-foot window running horizontally - or run 2 parallel wires? Second, as the vine trunk eventually grows very thick and heavy, is your wire sufficient, or would people normally install a larger strap at that part of the trunk and attach to the wall? Cheers!
Firstly thanks for watching my video and for your message. For my wisteria I have run the wires below the window with separate wire support sections each side of the window. If I had space above then I would then run another section above. Having different support sections, in my opinion, is easier as you have less wire to contend with and it’s easier to get the wires tensioned.
Secondly, provided you are using decent grade vine eyes and a heavy duty wire you shouldn’t have any issues with them supporting a mature Wisteria. As the wisteria stems mature and harden they too will provide support for the more juvenile growth. Good luck with your planting. If you want any more help please contact me.
@@diyhomeandgardening Thank you so much!!
@@diyhomeandgardening I'm sorry - I did think of another question that I thought I'd ask. When you run a section of wires above the top or bottom of a large window (meaning the wisteria is growing/hanging horizontally at those parts), would you simply run 2 parallel wires (or a large rectangle), or are you still doing your "S" pattern - but maybe running the "S" horizontally?
All the wires run horizontally into which you then tie the Wisteria. You can do each horizontal section separately, but by running the wire in a continuous, stretched, ‘S’ shape it means that less wire is used, less cuts are made and you have to make fewer finishing twists. The ‘S’ shape makes for less work but does mean that it becomes more of a 2 person job if you are working on a large ish area.
I’m actually not wanting to hang wisteria, I don’t think 🤔? It’s flowers that look like little trumpet heads. I wish I had the descriptive cards to tell you what they are. Can you tell me if that would work the same way? Or is that just for wisterias?
Hi. Thanks for your message. The training method would work just the same. Without seeing a picture I imagine that the climber you have is a Campsis. Does it drop its leaves during winter?
I believe they’re called campsis radicans. I’m so sorry to be getting back with you so late. Thank you for any help you can provide.
Campsis radicans is a very vigorous climber and needs a full sun position for it to flower well.
As far as training is concerned: If you put up some strong supporting wires or frame and tie in the main stems of the Campsis where you want them to go then the plant will twine itself up the frame. They cling by themselves with roots that form on the stems.
Once they are established they put on an amazing show of flower.
I’ve also seen them grown as standards, forming a lovely tree like shape.
I’m so sorry to bother you, but I’m pretty ignorant with this kind of stuff. Can you tell me what you mean by growing as “standards”? We have two pots of them and they both have stem “climbers,” one more than the other.
@@sandrasamano8820. A standard has a clear vertical stem with a head of branches on the top. To create a standard from a Campsis you need to grow the stem up a cane or pole before you get to the desired height, at which point you allow the top growth to form.
I’ve done a video on how to create a standard Fuchsia if you want to see what a standard looks like.
Need a builder in after that!!
Not too sure what you mean exactly but it’s a simple job to carry out with just fairly basic tools required.
If you don’t have a drill then hammer in vine eyes are available.
4:40 “... then strain the wire...”. Possibly the most tricky part of the job, but you didn’t show how to do it!
Thanks for your message.
To tighten the wire you first of all need to secure one end and then thread the other end through all the eyelets of the vine eyes.
As you work up each layer you need to pull to stretch and tighten the wire, before proceeding through the next layer. It’s pulling the wire whilst also threading through the next layer that can be a 2 person job.
Once all the way to the top then a second pair of hands is also useful to keep tension on the wire whilst bending and twisting the unattached end, to secure in final position.
Hope this helps you. Good luck.
By the way, what climber are you training, always interested to find out who is doing what I their garden.
All the best, Ian
Sorry for the stupid question but I’m buying my supplies and I can’t figure out for the life of me what size of vine eyes I need to buy. I have 8x40mm wall plugs. What size did you use?
I used exactly that size. I think from memory they are the blue coloured ones.
Make sure you drill a little deeper than the Rawplug depth to allow for debris.
@@diyhomeandgardening sorry I meant what size of vine eyes to fit those wall plugs? (Total diy novice person here and the screwfix website is stressing me out 😂)
@@sarahschneider7435. I used the vine eyes from Screwfix before but I think they are only about 40mm in length, although very strong.
Toolstation also do vine eyes which are longer but thinner gauge so not as strong.
As you are using decent sized rawlplugs then the screwfix ones would be a good fit but will make the wires sit close to the wall.