The Colorful Vining Plant That Adds Beauty & Privacy To Your Yard

There are plenty of ways that you can add privacy to your yard. Whether you want to block the view of your front yard from the street, or your neighbors can look into your backyard from the windows of their home, creating your own private oasis where you can relax in comfort is not that difficult. One of the fastest and easiest ways to do this is to erect some kind of trellis and grow a beautiful vine over it. One such summer splendor is the black-eyed Susan vine (Thunbergia alata).

Although this vine is an evergreen perennial in its native Africa, it's normally grown as an annual in many parts of the U.S., except in hardiness zones 10 through 11. This makes it ideal for situations where you might be looking for shade and privacy in summer but want to let the sun warm you in winter. So, not only could you grow this as a screening plant on a trellis or fence, but you could also use it to cover a pergola or arbor. It grows relatively fast and can easily cover a 5-foot trellis or fence during the warmer months. Apart from its lovely soft green leaves, the vine will get covered with masses of yellow and orange trumpet-shaped flowers from mid-summer through to fall. Just a word of caution, though. Before planting this vine in your garden, make sure you check with your local extension office to ensure that it's not considered invasive or a noxious weed in your region.

If you want this pretty, fast-growing vine to form a privacy screen, you'll first need to create a structure for it to grow over. The soft stems tend to twine around supports, as the plant doesn't produce tendrils that allow it to cling. A trellis will work well because you can guide the growing stems upwards to begin with. If you want to cover a fence, you could just secure some vertical string lines that you can use to help the vines grow in the direction you want. The black-eyed Susan vine also does well in hanging baskets, cascading down quite vigorously. This might allow you to create a private spot by positioning the planters strategically as a movable screen. It's another one of those landscaping ideas that will create privacy in your backyard.

Culturally, the black-eyed Susan plant does best when grown in a sunny spot and kept well-watered. Other than that, it doesn't require any extra maintenance, especially if you're growing it as an annual. In addition to bringing a lovely bit of privacy to your yard, this vine will also attract bees, butterflies, and even hummingbirds when it's in bloom. If you're looking for seeds or nursery starts, keep your eye out for some interesting cultivars that produce flowers in different colors, such as white and red. However, you will find that this is one of those vine plants that isn't worth buying as seedlings because it grows so quickly and easily from seed.