You've found the famous Dave's Garden website! Join this friendly global community that shares tips and ideas for home and gardens, along with seeds and plants!
Check out the DG homepage for a brief overview of what you'll find in this gardening mega-site.
Login
If you don't have an account yet, visit the registration page to sign up.
We are planning to build a footbridge over a small stream that flows across our property. I would like to have a scented flowering climber that we could train on it. What do you guys recommend? There are lots of climbers but which are the best for scent in our climate. Also would wisteria grow in our climate or is it too hot (zone 11)? We don't get any real cold season do we need that to set the flowers?
Any idea of a good website for foot bridge designs?
Hey thank you so much for all the useful hints. I particularly like the Beaumontia and the Ragoon Creeper. I need to look for them in our trip to Kampala next week. There is much more available there than up here in Arua but very little knowledge of what the names of the plants actually are!
I will study the bridge design too. Our bridge should be about 8m long. so it is quite an undertaking!
Rangoon Creeper is probably the ideal for your climate. But it is difficult to get rid of if you decided to do that some time later. One question though, do you have termites there? If you build the structure of timber, plants growing up onto it will encourage termites to get into and eat out the bridge.
Wood preservative (such as oxyborate) and paint, help to curb insects and fungal rot.
That is the routine for long lasting wood structures here, where we get over 200 inches of rain per year. Purposeful and ornamental bridges over waterways are common-place.
Once the wood is cut, it is soaked in oxyborate. When dried, primer is coated, then the finish paint.
If you are clear coating to show the looks of the wood, oxyborate is still applied first after every cut.
I have been building and maintaining structures in high rainfall areas of Hawai'i for 30 years. If you do a good job to preserve the structure (bridge) and maintain it, it will last for many years.
Wood always lasts longer than cheap metal (iron) and looks much better. Unless you can afford stainless steel, or more expensive metal, I would go with an attractive wood structure, and take good care of it; keeping the structure sealed and painted (which may mean a little maintenance every year, after construction).
If the bridge is smallish (over a small stream), the Beaumontia vine will be very heavy as it matures.
The Jasmine would be beautiful.
Telosma Cordata would be also suitable. Fragrance a mix of violets and roses. Easily pruned down to about a foot after flowering, or 'selective pruning' if necessary. Attractive little bunches of small yellow bell-like flowers. Can be rooted from a cutting.
Photo Gallery: http://www.google.com/search?sourceid=navclient&ie=UTF-8&rlz...
