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Early spring is a good time to plant clematis, honeysuckle, wisteria and other container-grown climbers.  

Although there is a natural tendency to plant climbers against a wall, don’t forget that the soil here can be amongst the worst in the garden – it may be filled with rubble and building debris. Hard work – a lot of digging and the addition of a good organic compost – can provide a solution. Consider other places in the garden for positioning climbers. Try thinking laterally rather than vertically! 

Perhaps the most admired and spectacular plant of the season is wisteria. In this photo, you can see how it has been trained along a picket fence. The shoots which would normally head upwards as verticals instead run horizontally along the fence, in an unusual and attractive variation on a theme. 

When buying wisteria from a garden centre or nursery, be sure to choose a strong specimen – and look for signs of a healthy graft at the base of the plant. Many people maintain that it pays to buy and plant wisteria when they are already in bloom, as they can be notoriously slow to flower.

Clematis is possibly the most popular climber, and one which lends itself to almost every season. With species which flower from January until autumn, there is a plant to suit almost every situation. Try growing it through a shrub with contrasting coloured flowers, or 2 cultivars together can look lovely.

Finally, why not add interest to borders by building in an obelisk or two – a combination of small climbing roses, especially intertwined with an early-flowering clematis, gives height without robbing other plants of light.