These might work, but they will need occasional watering, at least until they get established. They are both very vigorous, and will quickly cover a chain link fence. They both grow like weeds for me in Portland. I don't know if they will grow in full shade.

1. Boston ivy, Parthenocissus tricuspidata. Will cover concrete walls. No flowers. Beautiful fall leaf color.
2. Clematis montana rubens. Probably won't cover concrete walls. Beautiful flowers. No fall leaf color.

None of these are evergreen. Do you want evergreen? Another point: a grow anywhere all-rounder might be as much of a thug as ivy. Maybe you should select different kinds for different spots, instead of trying to find a one size fits all plant.

Have you thought of using an evergreen honeysuckle vine? I know most honeysuckles climb by twining, so it might not be suitable, but it's a thought.

-Gord

The best plant I can think of for you, if you can find it.... Cissus striata. I wouldn't recommend this outside of the milder urban climate of Seattle or somewhere near the water, but it is hardier than the literature says... to about 10-12F. A little less hardy and slower growing, but very tough, would be Ficus pumila. These are the only evergreen, drought tolerant vines I can think of that will stick to walls besides ivy. There are also Hydrangea anomala, H. seemanii and H. integrifolia but they don't grow as fast, and need water.

For the fence... the Clematis montana suggestion might be a good one. Or C. paniculata (ternifolia).

Thanks for the suggestions, everyone!

Yes, I was hoping to get something evergreen.

I did see some of the Japanese hydrangea vine on a wall on Capitol Hill last night. It's a nice looking plant. Anyone have experience with it?

I could definitely do two different plants for the different applications. For the walls, I'd rather avoid flowers that might attract bees, as they're close to an entrance, but one of the flowering vines would be great for the fence.

The ficus pumila looks great. Any leads on where to find one around here?

I planted a 1 gallon Schizophragma hydrangeoides in Spring 2005 in a difficult spot - dry shade, against a limbed-up Ponderosa Pine, with daily water in Summer. It didn't do very well; got snacked on by caterpillars initially and by season's end, it was no bigger than when I got it in the Spring. This February I moved it to a more favorable location but still in dryish shade; the caterpillars have left it alone but it's still struggling. Comparatively, the more common climbing hydrangeas grows wonderfully for me (given Summer water), even in difficult spots.

Most likely you'd need to find Ficus pumila in the house plant section somewhere. I've never seen it offered as an outdoor plant here.

Does very well in shade in Southern CA and AZ, would be surprised if it made it here.....

Is there any way you could string any wire up the concrete wall, or perhaps add a trellis-type structure to it? That could expand the possibilities.

For beneath the fir tree, consider the native salal. Evergreen, indestructible, naturally grows under conifers anyway, full sun or full shade, well watered or totally unwatered. A woody shrubby groundcover, won't grow up walls or fences. You'll need something else for that. Very few things will stick to a wall by themselves, that's why so many people planted ivy all over the place. Put something on the wall for other vines to climb on - lattice, bird netting, whatever. The creeping fig looks like he!! when it's not happy - too dry, too cold, too sunny. Sunburns easily, not very hardy, and gets chlorotic to boot. If you have the right conditions though, it could be very nice indeed, but those right conditions will be rare around here.

Do you need a vine on the chain link, or would a shrubby hedge do instead? Ditto for the wall - maybe what you want is an espaliered shrub, you're more likely to find something suitably evergreen that way, very very few evergreen vines for around here. Espaliers need maintenance though, pruning and training, but can be very satisfying. Or perhaps a bamboo screen for the chainlink, instead of a plant. My neighbors have bamboo screen on the wire fence between us and it looks very nice and gives them the privacy from my dogs that they seem to think they need. Does not last very long in all this rain though. A few years. Could be worthwhile though.

Climbing hydrangea does very well and sticks to walls - a true hydrangea, not the japanese one. H. anomala I think. Does not want direct sun though, needs bright shade, and don't count on flowers. Needs water. Evergreen clematis takes part shade and somewhat dry but it's pretty rampant and as with any other vine (except ivy) you get bare woody legs at the base. Flowers in March when bees are not around, except bumblebees which rarely sting.

I too am looking for an evergreen to cover an eyesore storage trailer (sitting in the sun).

When I lived near Toronto, the chain link fence surrounding the pool was covered with grape vines. It grew abundantly, and looked great. I didn't have to do any watering (it was well established when I bought the house). However, it was not evergreen.

I don't have an easy water source for where this trailer sits.

Any suggestions?

I personally think bamboo would look great as a screen in front of a chain link fence. Phyllostachys nuda is evergreen and I never water it. It will spread but a barrier could be installed to keep it in check. I love how green it looks in the winter. I've seen a yard with a narrow line of some other bamboo along a wall and it looked fantastic. It might have been a timber bamboo. It would take managing.