20+ Favorite Flowering Vines and Climbing Plants

Updated onApril 30, 2022
InDIY Gardening and Landscape Design

20+ best colorful flowering vines & climbing plants with beautiful landscape ideas for outdoor spaces, shade gardens, walls, fences, etc.

To celebrate the arrival of spring, let’s talk about flowering vines and climbers!

Flowering vines and climbing plants are such important garden elements: they provide sweet fragrance, shade and colors, beautify boring walls and fences, attract hummingbirds and butterflies, and create enchanting outdoor spaces.

Among the hundreds of gardens I have designed or visited, I will never forget those sweet moments of passing through a tunnel of glorious climbing roses, or sitting under an arbor covered with fragrant jasmine vine blossoms…

Let’s check out some of my favorite easy-to-grow climbing vines for year-round beauty, including fast growing flowering vines , fragrant flowering vines , colorful climbing plants,, and more!

* Some resources in article are affiliate links. Full disclosure here .

Wisteria vines are the dreamiest flowering vines.

I have seen Wisterias blooming in so many climates from Boston to San Diego ( USDA hardiness zones 5-10 ). One of the first perennial vines to flower in early spring, the Wisteria is a fast growing flowering vine that is also very fragrant.

If you have a small garden, keep the Wisteria in a pot, as the plant can get huge! ( Source: 1 | 2 )

Colorful Tropical vines

Bougainvillea is a thorny vine, yet it’s one of the most popular flower vines in warmer climates ( hardiness zone 9-10 ) because of the stunning flowers and long blooming season.

If you live in a colder climate, the Flame Honeysuckle / Lonicera heckrottii and many other varieties such as Japanese honeysuckle is cold tolerant even in USDA hardiness zone 4, but still has the tropical look. ( Source: 3 | 4 )

Need some trellis ideas? Here are 21 beautiful DIY arbors, trellises and vertical garden structures.

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21 beautiful DIY arbors, trellises and vertical garden structures.

Climbing vines for year round color

Pyracantha is an evergreen vine or shrub that can be trained on a wall or column. It has very pretty white flowers in spring and early summer, the clusters of red berries and the bright green foliage bring vibrant colors to the garden in late autumn and winter.

Different cultivars have either red, orange, or yellow berries. ( Source: 5 | 6)

Colorful climbing vine tunnels

Beautiful and delicious – just look at these showy flowers and seed pods of the Scarlet Runner Bean and the Hyacinth Bean! While most flowering vines in this article are perennial vines, beans and some squash and gourds are great annual vines for an edible garden or backyard farm! ( Source: 7 | 8)

Other delicious fruiting vines you can plant are kiwi vines, passion flower vines, and of course, grape vines!

Cottage charm: Climbing Roses and Hydrangea vines

Arbors and pergolas add so much character to a garden, porch or patio, especially when they are planted with flowering vines. While climbing Roses ( “Zephirine Drouhin” Climbing Rose shown here ) need full sun to bloom profusely, the Climbing Hydrangea / Hydrangea petiolaris thrives in both sun and part shade. ( Source: 9 | 10)

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Flowering vines for fence and pergolas

It has been recorded that a single Rosa banksiae, common name Lady Banks’ rose, can have as many as 50,000 bright yellow flowers! A great companion plant would be the Lilac Vine / Hardenbergia, which is evergreen, and has contrasting lavender color flowers. ( Source: 11 | 12)

Gorgeous Clematis Flowering Vines

Clematis is a vigorous vine covered with a profusion of large flowers in almost any color you desire, with varieties that bloom at different times of year from spring to fall. Train them on a garden gate or a fence for a beautiful focal point. ( Source: 13 | 14)

Two of my favorite Clematis with the prettiest pinks – Clematis armandii ‘Apple Blossom‘ and Clematis montana ‘Elizabeth‘. ( Source: 15 | 16)

Fragrant flowering vines

The elegant Star Jasmine / Trachelospermum jasminoides is surprisingly tough: it is heat tolerant to over 100° F and frost hardy to around 10° F. The unforgettably fragrant star-shaped white flowers bloom from spring to fall. Another great fragrant flowering vine is the honeysuckle. ( Source: tunnel | wall )

Hummingbirds love Trumpet vines

Both trumpet vines, Red Trumpet Vine / Campsis radicans and Lavender Trumpet Vine / Clytostoma callistegioides, are great plants for covering a fence and training along a wall, overhead arbor or pergola. Hummingbirds will be visiting you! ( Source: 18 | 19)

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