Knowledgebase

Vining Plant for Pergola #909602

Asked July 13, 2025, 9:21 AM EDT

I recently installed a pergola in my backyard and I’m looking for recommendations on what flowering vine would be best to grow up it? It’s in full sun and it is a freestanding structure with fencing about 6 feet away. Some maintenance is ok, but I don’t want the vine to end up taking over my yard. Thanks in advance!

Wayne County Michigan

Expert Response

All vines will need guidance as they climb up your pergola. I recommend using something like jute twine to tie them to the structure or direct their growth. They will also need to be watered and pruned at different times (if you choose a perennial). 

Clematis can be very pretty and bloom in mid spring. There is a huge variety of selections to choose from, with flowers typically purple or white or lavender blue. You can choose a cultivar based on its ultimate height. I am a fan of Clematis 'Betty Corning' because it is very vigorous and blooms later. Most Clematis do not smell, but 'Betty Corning' has a fragrance that I like. It is one of the taller vines. Clematis can get a blight, however. Once you have it, you have it. If you have tried growing Clematis in this yard before and had them die, I would not plant them again. 

Coral honeysuckle (Lonicera sempervirens) is also an option. It is native to the east coast and hummingbirds like it. It has small coral colored trumpet flowers.

Climbing roses. The thing about roses is that they do not wrap around or grab onto structures. You have to direct how they grow and tie them to the structure. 

Passionflower vine. Native further south. It should grow in Wayne County, but a hard winter might cause it to die back. If your pergola is in a city yard, then it should be protected enough to survive. You might not get fruit, but the flowers are the real reason to grow it. 

You might consider planting one vine on a corner and another vine on the opposite corner. They will probably bloom at different times. Annual vines can be fun as you can try different things each season. 

Annual vines:
Moonflower (grown from seeds, blooms at night)
Hyacinth beans (grown from seeds)
Scarlet runner beans (grown from seeds, hummingbirds)
Mina lobata (grown from seeds, hummingbirds)
Cardinal flower (grown from seeds, hummingbirds)
Black-eyed Susan vine (purchase plant, hummingbirds)
Pole beans (grown from seeds, you can eat the beans)
Snake gourd or other other gourds 

Vines I do not recommend:
Morning glory (Ipomoea tricolor). It seeds too prolifically and becomes a weed. 
Sweet autumn clematis (Clematis terniflora). It is an classified as invasive in a few states and it is too vigorous. I till engulf your pergola and seed babies around your yard.
Honeysuckle (Lonicera japonica). Also invasive in other states and too vigorous. 
Trumpet vine (Campsis radicans). It's native further south and hummingbirds like it, but it will take over everything. 
Chocolate vine (Akebia quinata). Invasive. 
Wisteria is beautiful, but it doesn't reliably bloom in Michigan and it grows so quickly that it needs to be pruned and shaped weekly during the growing season.
Lindsey K. Kerr, MS, MHP  Replied July 15, 2025, 4:50 PM EDT

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