I don't know of any fast evergreen vine, but I have covered a wooden fence with english ivy. Once established it actually looks really good 12 months of the year. To keep it under control once a year we use a hedge trimmer on it. The area where it is planted looks like a very private little courtyard now.

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Ivy is great on chain link but unfortunately is by now a common pest plant in this region. Some sites in local cities are covered with acres of the stuff.

Speaking of bamboo, most are shade tolerant and moisture-loving (but will not grow in puddles). Small-leaved kind would be a good contrast to gunnera. Place on the right, north side of Marine Drive as you entered University Endowment Lands (Vancouver) has (or had, maybe it was fountain bamboo and flowered recently) a nice tight Fargesia hedge that made an impressive living wall under the conditions in that location. Have also seen a similar but less dense row of fountain bamboo in a shady spot at Clinton Bamboo Growers nursery south of Seattle.

English ivy is getting to be a problem up here too. The ivy on our fence never gets to flower or set seed because it gets a haircut at least once a year, sometimes twice, this in turn keeps the leaves small as well. It has been on the fence for at least 20 years. Black Bamboo is very nice, it's one of the clumping types. I grow this one myself, I never let my clump get too big, keep dividing it and giving it away. They can be a bearcat to dig if the clumps get too large. Hope you find something that is suitable, I know how disappointing it is when you work so hard to make something attractive and there is an eyesore right next to it. Good luck.

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Black bamboo is a running bamboo, actually. Golden bamboo is also often seen in dense tufts here, but is a runner just the same. I have seen it coming up all over an abandoned city lot in California, a real nightmare.

bboy, I stand corrected, when I was given mine I was told it was a clumping type, never bothered to look it up. I guess I'm very lucky mine doesn't seem to run much. I sure love this forum I have learned so much since I've joined in. Thank you all.

As to running bamboo, here's one for you. There was a house on a double lot here, the house was on the back lot, the whole of the front lot was a thick stand of a tall Bamboo, you couldn't see the house. A sign was put out front, FREE BAMBOO HELP YOURSELF, within two weeks it was all gone. Reminds one of the story of the picket fence, a paintbrush,a can of whitewash and a very smart young boy.

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Is akebia quinata evergreen in zone 8? I've never grown it but it I've read that it's a fast grower, tolerant of sun or shade, and has fragrant interesting flowers in spring.

Akebia is a good choice - mostly evergreen but will lose some foliage in colder weather. Doesn't really form a very dense cover tho, and will be sparse flowering in too much shade. Other choices could include Clematis armandii, which is one of the more shade tolerant of the clems. Or you could consider one of the evergreen climbing hydrangeas - both integrifolia and seemanii are becoming more common and increasingly available.

Our winter hasn't been that cold this year, my Akebia has lost all it's foliage except for one or two leaves. It's a mature vine, growing on a arch. Does this vine ever set fruit?

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Yes, but it won't in much shade :-) It needs summer heat (which we don't always receive) and is not self-fertile either, so needs a second variety to cross pollinate. While the fruit is a curiosity and certainly interesting, I'd not consider it a stellar menu item - unpleasant, gummy and pulpy texture with a slightly sweet taste. Think a combination of watered down tapioca and sweet, non-fishy caviar :-)

Our display plant at the nursery, in a very exposed location, still has most of its foliage, although rather ratty looking at the moment. You didn't get hit with those two strong cold fronts we experienced this winter - one in November, the second just last month? We had temps in the teens (farenheit) in some areas here. I'm surprised you didn't experience something similar up north.

Gardengal, Yes we had a couple of cold spells, didn't get a real freeze though. I guess I lucked out, where I am we are close to the water. We don't get a lot of summer heat our high's if we get any are in the 80's, our winters are unpredictable. I have seen our December's in the 70's and I have seen them below 0 (farenheit) After your description of the fruit I'm just as glad mine doesn't get any. I believe the lowest my outside thermometer went to was 32.

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