Native Plants

Q. Who is Mr. Smarty Plants?

A: There are those who suspect Wildflower Center volunteers are the culpable and capable culprits. Yet, others think staff members play some, albeit small, role. You can torture us with your plant questions, but we will never reveal the Green Guru's secret identity.

Help us grow by giving to the Plant Database Fund or by becoming a member

Did you know you can access the Native Plant Information Network with your web-enabled smartphone?

Ask Mr. Smarty Plants

Ask Mr. Smarty Plants is a free service provided by the staff and volunteers at the Lady Bird Johnson Wildflower Center.

Search Smarty Plants

See a list of all Smarty Plants questions

Please forgive us, but Mr. Smarty Plants has been overwhelmed by a flood of mail and must take a break for awhile to catch up. We hope to be accepting new questions again soon. Thank you!

Need help with plant identification, visit the plant identification page.

rate this answer

1 rating

Friday - March 29, 2013

From: Norfolk, VA
Region: Mid-Atlantic
Topic: Shrubs, Vines
Title: Plants to cover 1000 square foot wall in Virginia
Answered by: Nan Hampton

QUESTION:

In Norfolk, VA, I want to cover a large (1000 sq ft) cement wall with a variety of maintenance free plant life. Any recommendations?

ANSWER:

It would be helpful to know how tall the wall is and if you want vines to trail down it or climb up it—or, perhaps, you want plants to grow in front of it. I will suggest a few of each. You should check the GROWING CONDITIONS section on each species page to be sure they match your site for water and sunlight conditions.

VINES:

Bignonia capreolata (Crossvine) is evergreen and has orange-red flowers in the spring.

Celastrus scandens (American bittersweet) is deciduous with yellow fall foliage and with scarlet fruit.

Clematis crispa (Swamp leatherflower) is deciduous and trails 6 to 10 feet with pinkish to purplish flowers.

Clematis virginiana (Devil's darning needles) is a 12 to 14 foot climbing deciduous vine that has profuse clusters of flowers.

Decumaria barbara (Decumaria) is a deciduous woody vine that grows to 30 feet with fragrant white flowers.

Gelsemium sempervirens (Carolina jessamine) is an evergreen 10 to 20 feet long with yellow flowers.

Lonicera sempervirens (Coral honeysuckle) is an evergreen 3 to 20 feet long vine with red blossoms.

Passiflora incarnata (Purple passionflower) is an herbaceous vine up to 25 feet with large purple flowers.

Parthenocissus quinquefolia (Virginia creeper) grows 3 to 40 feet long and will easily climb up a wall. It is deciduous with colorful fall foliage.

Vitis riparia (Riverbank grape) deciduous woody vine to 35 feet that is fast-growing and long-lived. The berries are edible and make good jelly and wines.

SHRUBS

Castanea pumila (Chinkapin) is a deciduous shrub that grows to 30 feet with edible fruit and colorful fall foliage.

Euonymus americanus (American strawberry-bush) is a deciduous shrub of 6 to 12 feet with bright red fruits holding orange seeds.

Kalmia latifolia (Mountain laurel) is an evergreen shrub growing 12 to 20 feet with showing pink flowers.

Morella cerifera (Wax myrtle) is a 6 to 12 foot evergreen shrub with bluish berries.

Rhododendron catawbiense (Catawba rosebay) is an evergreen 6 to 20 foot shrub with large showy lilac-colored flowers.

Viburnum prunifolium (Blackhaw) is a 12 to 15 foot deciduous shrub with white flowers, blue berries and colorful fall foliage.

You can see more possibilities for plants to cover your wall in the Virginia Recommended list of plants native to Virginia and commercially available for landscaping. You can use the NARROW YOUR SEARCH option to select plants from the list that meet your criteria.