Pergola Plants | Which Are The Best Climbers? (2024)

If you’re looking for a way to further enhance your pergola, pergola plants are the perfect addition. Transform the simple crossbeam structure of your pergola with blossoming canopies and intricate climbers to make a plant paradise in your outdoor space.

Cultivating gorgeous pergola plants is just one of our many stylish garden pergola ideas. Here, we break down the best pergola plant ideas, including climbing plants, hanging plants, pot plants and even artificial plants so you can choose the best plants to grow or choose for your garden.

Our Favourite Pergola Plant Ideas

The Best Climbing Plants for Pergolas

Climbing plants are some of the most popular foliage ideas for pergolas. If you want to keep things simple, can you just grow them up the vertical posts.

Many people, however, opt to incorporate trellis panels to their pergolas to allow for additional climbing plant support. If you grow enough, you can create a wall thick with vibrant colours and rich fragrances – just one of many ways to add shelter and privacy to a pergola.

Here are some of the best climbing plants to add a special touch to your pergola:

Climbing rose

Rambling roses work well on pergolas because of their long, flexible stems which can easily be trained up the structure. When roses bloom they evoke a romanticism that will beautifully enhance your pergola as a tranquil evening spot.

Climbing Hydrangea

A climbing hydrangea gives glossy foliage and beautiful clusters of white flowers in the spring and summer months. It does require pruning and training as it’s a slow grower, but the end results are worth it.

Trumpet Vine

Trumpet vines bloom in summer and autumn in a profusion of crimson and orange to lend a uniquely exotic feeling to your pergola. Full sun or only partial shade is ideal for this vine, as well as well-drained soil.

Wisteria

A wisteria plant can adorn your pergola with spectacular pendulums of liveliness lavender flowers. While it’s a truly beautiful vine to grow on your pergola, do note that wisteria needs careful pruning lest its lavish blooms completely swamp an area.

Crimson Glory Vine

Crimson glory is a vine that gets its name from its bursts of magnificent autumn hues. Another producer of leafy canopies, the crimson glory vine provides lush awnings that quickly cover your pergola.

Fast Climbing Plants for Pergolas

If you’ve got a new pergola that you just can’t wait to embellish, there are many options for fast-growing climbers:

Honeysuckle

Honeysuckle has a magical fragrance that only deepens at dusk, filling the air with rich aromas. With more than 180 species, honeysuckle is a large vine that can rapidly grow to cover your pergola easily in a charming tapestry.

Rangoon Creeper

This vine climbs effortlessly when grown in full sun and produces vibrant orange flowers with a sweet scent for a playful pergola covering that exudes liveliness.

Golden Hops

Another vining plant that’s a particularly fast-growing, golden hops can easily grow up to 4-6 metres. Golden hops can create canopies of luscious green to provide extra covering and privacy for your pergola.

Pergola Plants in Pots

It can take time to plant, train and prune climbing plants up a pergola. A fantastic solution is to grow your plants in pots. You can purchase climbing plants that have already grown somewhat so that all you need to do is place them in a container and let them grow.

Here are some of the best climbing pants that you can grow in pots around your pergola:

Clematis

Clematis are plants that are easy to grow and suit sheltered positions. They’ll easily twist around the posts of your pergola with some direction and require little pruning. The distinctively-shaped flowers of clematis come in a wide variety of colours like reds, blues, pinks and whites: why not plant two different shades and allow them to entwine colourfully?

English Ivy

This ivy will spread rapidly and is a self-clinging climber. Ivy is great as a low-maintenance climbing plant that can withstand adverse weather conditions and grow to encompass luscious green cascades around your pergola.

Jasmine

Jasmine is suited to growing in a container as it needs well-drained soil in order to thrive. Blooming in the spring, jasmine flowers are a stunning white and come with a distinctive fragrance.

Passion Flower

Passion flowers grow well in warm climates and lots of sunlight. Growing them in pots mean you can move them about to achieve their full, spectacular bloom. Exciting explosions of pink make the passion flower a sensational pergola adornment.

Artificial Plants for Pergolas

If you don’t have the know-how or time to properly tend to plants and flowers, artificial plants can be a good solution. When browsing, make sure to choose ones specifically designed for the outdoors so that they are properly UV-resistant and don’t fade in colour. Adding high-quality artificial plants to your pergola will give you instant coverage for a nice decorative touch and extra shade.

Hanging Plants From Your Pergola

The spacious beams that make up most pergola roofs provide a great place from which to hang plants. Hanging baskets in particular make wonderful additions and can be easy to maintain. A cornucopia of tumbling blossoms hanging from a basket on your pergola can be dazzling. Mix and match different coloured flowers for a truly showstopping look.