26 Flowering Vines for Shade | Best Shade Loving Climbers

You've got that one corner of your garden, the shady side. Maybe along a fence or a north-facing wall. And every plant you try just struggles. Sound familiar? The good news is you don't have to settle for a dull bare space. There are some truly stunning vines that actually prefer the shade. And today we're going through the best ones you can grow right now. Before we continue, if you love gardening and want access to our exclusive plant guides, advanced tips, free ebooks, and premium videos, make sure to join the Balcony Garden Web Membership. Members get special members-only content that we don't share in regular videos. So join now and take your gardening skills to the next level. Roses in the shade? Yes, it's possible. Floribunda and shrub varieties like Scarborough Fair, Kew Gardens, Lady of Shallot, and William and Catherine can bloom beautifully with just four hours of direct sun a day. They don't need full sun like other rose types, which makes them a great pick for partially shaded spots. Just make sure the soil drains well and you're good to go. If you want fragrance in a shaded corner, this one delivers. Sweet Autumn Clematis is a vigorous climber that produces clouds of small white flowers and thrives happily in partial shade. It's one of those plants that just needs no fuss at all. This one's a bit underrated. Sausage vine grows up to about 16 feet and puts out soft-scented pale pink flowers in spring and summer. It's frost-hardy, prefers some sunlight, but handles shade really well. The pale-made leaves give it a lush tropical feel. This is probably one of the best choices you can make for a truly shaded area. Climbing Hydrangea clings to walls and fences on its own and produces large clusters of white fragrant blooms from late spring through summer. It's slow to get started, but once it's established, it's absolutely gorgeous. Wisteria is hard to beat for drama. Those long-hanging clusters of white and purple blooms are iconic. In the shade, it tends to produce more foliage. So, if you want heavier flowering, give it a slightly sunnier position, but it will still grow and look beautiful in a partially shaded spot. This is a classic for a reason. Dutch Honeysuckle is a deciduous climber that grows 10 to 20 feet tall and produces tubular crimson flowers with creamy yellow throats. It's slow-growing, which actually works in its favor for smaller gardens, and it handles partial shade without any problems. For shady walls and fences, Confederate Jasmine, sometimes called Asiatic or Madison Jasmine, is an excellent option. It has shiny dark leaves and produces sweet-scented white flowers that will fill the air around it. It's evergreen, too, so you get year-round interest. Don't let the name fool you. This one is actually quite easygoing. Clarodendrum Bleeding Heart is a non-aggressive flowering vine that performs well in dappled or partial shade. The blooms are striking, with white calyxes and red petals that create a really unusual, elegant look. Sweet Pea is one of those childhood garden favorites that also happens to work well in partial shade. It's easy to grow from seed and produces sweet-fragrant flowers in pink, purple, white, and red from spring into early summer. It's a real crowd-pleaser. If you want something fast-growing with a tropical feel, Butterfly Vine is worth considering. It thrives in partial shade and produces bright yellow blooms through spring and summer. It's vigorous and makes a great cover for unsightly fences or walls. This one looks like a wilder version of Wisteria. The blooms have a similar hanging shape, but with a reddish tone. It's hardy down to zone 3 and grows with very little effort. One thing to keep in mind, it can spread aggressively, so keep it away from your perennial beds. Passion Flower is one of the most exotic looking plants you can grow in a temperate garden. It can reach up to 30 feet tall and blooms are genuinely spectacular. Intricate, architectural, and unlike anything else. Varieties like Constance Elliott and Chinensis do particularly well in shadier spots. The Chocolate Vine earns its name. The hanging purple flowers in spring actually have a faint chocolate scent. Beyond the flowers, it also produces glossy dark green leaves and edible eggplant-like fruits in late summer. It's a really versatile and interesting climber for partial shade. Butterfly Pea is a gorgeous vine that does wonderfully in shaded garden areas. The intense blue-violet flowers are almost unreal in color and make a bold visual statement. Just make sure the soil doesn't stay waterlogged. Good drainage is key. Evergreen Clematis is known for being vigorous. Once it gets going, it really gets going. It covers fences, arches, and walls quickly and fills them with sweet-smelling white flowers. If you've got a large bare surface you want to cover fast, this is your plant. For gardeners in warmer climates, Blue Trumpet Vine is a real treat. The cup-shaped flowers come in pale blue and creamy yellow shades. They look a bit like Morning Glory, but with more substance. It's a tropical beauty that thrives in warm, partial-shaded spots. Similar to Climbing Hydrangea, but with a slightly different character, Japanese Hydrangea Vine produces creamy white lace-capped flowers that have a light honey scent. It's brilliant against walls and fences and adds instant elegance to any shaded garden structure. Originally from the Himalayas, the Nepalese Paper Plant brings something really special to a shade garden. It has clusters of intensely fragrant flowers and long, elegant leaves. It grows best in moderately cool climates and is well worth tracking down if you want something a little different. If you want to cover a wall or hide an eyesore, Crimson Glory Vine is one of the fastest solutions out there. The heart-shaped leaves are green through summer, but turn a jaw-dropping mix of scarlet orange and crimson purple in autumn. Stunning seasonal color with very little effort. Kadsura is a semi-evergreen vine that's mostly grown for its ornamental value. It produces small yellow or white flowers in spring and follows them up with bright red berries that last well into the colder months. The variegated leaves add extra interest and it handles shade with ease. This one sits somewhere between a vine and a shrub depending on how you train it. Emerald Gaiety Euonymus has crisp green and white variegated leaves that brighten up shady spots all year round. It's low-maintenance and works beautifully as a ground cover or a climber in partial shade. Variegated Kiwi Vine is mostly grown for its incredible foliage. In light shade, the leaves come out in a mix of white, pink, and green that look almost painted. It also produces small white flowers in spring. It's a real eye-catcher, especially when it catches a bit of dappled light. An evergreen climbing shrub that grows 10 to 15 feet tall, this one produces yellow or white flowers in spring and follows up with decorative red berries. The variegated foliage is the real draw though. It holds its color well throughout the year in a shaded position. English Ivy is the ultimate shade-tolerator. It'll grow in the darkest corners where almost nothing else will. The deep green or variegated leaves look lush and evergreen all year. Just keep an eye on it. In the right conditions, it can spread quite enthusiastically, so it's worth managing the growth. Usually thought of as a houseplant, Golden Pothos is actually surprisingly capable outdoors in warm climates. In a fully or partially shaded outdoor spot, it can climb up to 30 to 40 feet, with those heart-shaped glossy leaves creating a tropical lush wall of green. If you're in zones 10 to 12, give it a go outside. And finally, Virginia Creeper, a classic deciduous climber that attaches itself to surfaces using little sucker discs. No help needed. It puts on masses of growth each season and, like Crimson Glory Vine, delivers a brilliant show of autumn color. Give it just a touch of sun for the best growth and the most vivid seasonal display. So there you have it, 26 flowering and foliage vines that will genuinely thrive in the shade. Whether you want fragrance color, fast coverage, or year-round interest, there's something on this list for every garden. If you found this helpful, give the video a like and drop a comment below letting me know which one you're planning to try. And if you haven't subscribed yet, now's a great time. There's plenty more garden content coming your way.