House climbing shrubs/trees

I have a very young Parthenocissus Henryana climbing up the front of the house. I planted it about 3 years ago so we've already had a couple of years pleasure of it's stunning autumn colour. Once this thing has matured and wrapped itself around the house it will look incredible.

Although I certainly don't regret planting it I do have some slight concerns regarding it's future growth, especially after something I witnessed earlier this week. I had to take a slight detour to work as the route I usually use was closed due to roadworks.

On the detour I took was a house which was absolutely fully wrapped with a Parthenocissus. It looked astonishing, but at the same time it gave me a bit of a scare too. The main trunk must have been a good 6" in diameter, and many of the branching sprawling spaghetti like arms were also as thick as your wrist.

It was wound round downpipes and guttering and you could barely see the window frames any longer. And this got me thinking. If the occupants ever needed a leaky gutter or downspouts replacing it would be quite a task getting the work done. And don't even mention new windows!!

As beautiful as it looked there was also a hint of peril lurking beneath that beauty.

I suppose with very considered and well thought out training of the plant you could make life a lot easier for yourself but this encounter really opened my eyes and made me think about my young tree.

This is the part where everyone chirps in with horror stories of climbers which got completely out of hand. Let's here them!!

 

It's basically as you say, they are only as good as they are managed and the older they get, the more ravenous they become. They head to the sky as they normally grow through trees, so you have to limit there spread into the gutters or roof. It's not a plant I'd want unless I was comfortable with a ladder but they look stunning and are regularly seen cloaking country houses. We have a climbing hydrangea doing the same job and a Virginia creeper which we allow to crawl a little bit up the house. The hydrangea is easy to control and the creeper is planted in the front garden several meters away and so we can just chop it back away from the house if it roams to high and start again.

 

Altho the Parthenocissus vine does provide wonderful autumn colour, one word usually connected with it is "vigorous" and that's no lie.
Whilst they love enveloping buildings, it's definitely not a good idea to grow them against a house as you noted on your detour but hindsight is always wonderful

 

I had a massive Campsis on the back wall of my house for years, it never really got out of hand as I pruned it every year, it flowered all summer.

Then one year I notice a shoot coming up out of the drain about 15ft away.

I got it all down a year later.

 

Some of these climbers when mature are stunning there's no denying it. Wisteria is another favourite of mine, as are Boston Ivy and the before mentioned climbing Hydrangea.

But as beautiful as they are they certainly have the potential to cause a helluva lot of grief too!

 

Wrapping itself around the house sounds nice but it climbs. A house owner down from me has to get someone in to clear it from the roof and chimneys every year.

 

I think the P. henryana one is slightly better behaved than the species one @Esoxlucius , but it's also not totally hardy, which will determine how well it grows for you. If it's managed a few years ago, you're probably fine.
I think it can be almost evergreen if the climate's mild.

 

As long as you are fit and able to climb ladders to clear the new growth from your gutters and inside the roof each year, you should have no worries or problems.
It starts to go pear-shaped when you miss a year or are unable for some reason to prune it.

 

Yes, Henryana is the more friendly version of the Virginia creeper family. Apparently not as vigorous growth wise and not quite as big size wise. But the important word here is "apparently"!!! Lol.

No problems there, I'm an avid cyclist!! I'm up their regularly as it is trimming, shaping and guiding. I have a climbing wire network attached to the wall to guide it whilst it's young but a bit of it's growth has passed the wires now and is attaching to the stonework by itself.

 

I have a friend who has one. When they bought the place it was up in the gutters and over windows. They cut it down to maybe 2 feet above the ground, and repeat every time it starts to get too much. So far it has grown back well every time. It just clings to the walls, no framework at all.

 

I would just create a no man's land, say a metre away from the roof line and just be ruthless with any bit that strays that far.