Any suggestions for my brick wall?

Dear Houston Gardeners:
I live in a patio community in the city of Houston, Texas and there is a three story West facing brick wall that partially borders one of the boundaries of my garden. I am wanting to cover the wall up to about 8 feet which is the height of my cedar fence, and the wall is about 16 feet wide. The wall is quite shaded except for a 1-2 hour blast of sun in the afternoon during the summer. It is an outside wall of my next door neighbor's home and there is no planting area at the base; instead it is set with paver stones to prevent drainage problems. I have mounted a cast stone bust of a woman on the wall which overlooks an iron urn on a pedestal at the base of the wall. I would like to make the area more interesting and lush but I can not figure out what vine that I can grow in a pot that would partially cover the wall; or any other interesting arrangement of plant material for that matter. I would like to stay with something that will be evergreen and can be maintained in a pot for a long period of time. I am not opposed to installing trellises but at the same time I do not want to make the wall appear too cluttered. Houston gardening has opened up a whole new gardening world to this former Midwesterner though I am still becoming familiar with the plants. That's where YOU come in. Any suggestions are greatly appreciated and will be taken into consideration. I have included some other photos of my space to convey the theme and feel of my garden.
Thanks,
SeaBlume

Pretty fountain! You've done a lot with that space. (btw, to show more than one photo, you can just reply to yourself in the same thread for each additional picture.)

Lordy, three-story west facing brick wall. That's an awful lot of masonry to soak up the Texas sun. Some of the Houston (=humid) folks can probably give you more specific ideas, but a few things that pop into my head:
- If you can attach the bust to the wall, you should be able to attach some planters? So you're not just limited to vines that grow up, but also hanging container plants that grow down. Maybe even sort of a semi-bonsai with a shrub, like a tree growing out of the side of a cliff.
- You didn't talk about how you use the patio, but maybe you sit out there a night? (That's what we do over here in the summer, barricade ourselves inside during the day, then enjoy a late dinner on the patio after dark.) It might be neat to have something night blooming or fragrant.
- Obviously it would take coordination with the neighbors (and a lot of digging), but there might be options to the pavers. Something like decomposed granite can offer help handle drainage during a downpour, but allow for planting as well.
- There's sort of a fad these days of outdoor curtains. There's lots of ways that can go terribly wrong, but for you, it might be an option just to break up the brick expanse and give yourself a different background.
- Or go nuts, and paint a trompe l'ouel (sp?) of a garden path widing away into the wall, back in the corner where it's cramped and there's limited sun.


Hope any of that helps! Be sure and share some more pictures as you develop the wall...

Not sure what the other directions look like yet; but maybe putting a bright red, cobalt blue or purple fabric drape on one section of brick wall behind seating would cut down on the drabbness of the brick and bring a warmth with a punch of color.

Here is a view of the brick wall

A view of the rest of the garden.

Your garden and fountain are very lovely and tranquil.
I just realized that is not YOUR brick wall so fabric is out. So let me have another go.
The bust is really nice but a bit too small scale for the wall by itself in my opinion. Maybe use the turquoise color of the object in the backgound of your last picture and paint a solid board base for the bust to hang inside. That brick is doing nothing for it right now. Then maybe paint a couple of large framed mirrors to bolt on either side on the wall in the same color. Perhaps long horizontal ones? As your vines fill in you could keep them trimmed back or remove the items.

If it is evergreen vine you want the Confederate Star Jasmine would be great, and it’s wonderful scent is a bonus. http://davesgarden.com/guides/pf/showimage/17600
Also another great choice would be the native Crossvine with bright orange blooms, and also evergreen. http://davesgarden.com/guides/pf/showimage/57628/
I think either vine would do well in your area in very large pots. You could use jute twine to give them a start up from the pot to the bottom of the mirrors, it would eventually disappear.

I am getting some inspiration from all of you. I had never thought of doing Confederate jasmine on the brick wall. I have it espaliered on the cedar fencing in the photo of the border, though it is hard to see from the picture. I know that Confederate jasmine will grow in some shade, though with some less flowering. The brick wall is adjacent to the sitting area which is under a large pergola so that particular vine on the wall would be lovely and fragrant since it would be so nearby. I agree, it will likely grow well in large pots. I am giving the mirrors some thought. My neighbor will not allow any painting on the brick wall but I am grateful for his permission to attach things to it to dress it up. Thanks for all of your ideas. It is great food for thought. I will keep you posted on progress.

This message was edited Nov 9, 2009 10:38 PM

This message was edited Nov 9, 2009 10:39 PM

I look forward to see what you eventually come up with. There are no mistakes when you are moving forward!

I think "mistakes" are learning opportunities. I have had several!