Long, Trailing Vines for Baskets

For Sunny Sites

• Sites that receive six or more hours of direct sunlight each day are classified as full sun. The lotus vine (Lotus berthelotii) thrives in sunny sites and produces trailing, 4-foot-long vines covered with gray foliage. It blooms with red flowers in late summer and tolerates heat. If overwintered indoors, this annual blooms in early spring with orange flowers. The blue pea (Clitoria ternatea) trails to 15 feet long and produces blue, white and yellow flowers from summer through fall. It grows well in sunny sites with regular irrigation.

For Lightly Shaded Sites

• Sites that receive four to five hours of direct sunlight each day are lightly shaded. Sweet peas (Lathyrus odoratus) produce 6-foot-long vines and grow well in light shade. These annuals bloom in early spring with aromatic purple, pink, red, white and peach flowers and require regular irrigation. Vinca or Madagascar periwinkle (Catharanthus roseus) grows well in hanging baskets and trails from 18 to 24 inches long. It grows well in light shade, especially afternoon shade, and blooms from spring through fall with red, purple, peach and white blossoms. Vinca comes in a range of cultivars, from the deep-red First Kiss Ruby to the snowy Victory Pure White.

For Partially Shaded Sites

• Partially shaded sites receive less than four hours of sun each day or an equal mix of sun and shade. The cypress vine (Ipomea quamoclit) grows well in partial shade and trails up to 10 feet long. It blooms from summer through late fall with small, bright red flowers. This annual vine grows quickly and has fern-like foliage. The ivy geranium (Pelargonium peltatum) grows best in partial shade and requires afternoon shade to thrive. This trailing vine produces 3- to 4-foot-long stems and blooms with red-to-white flowers through the summer.

For Shaded Sites

• Sites that only receive reflected or indirect light are classified as fully shaded. Several ivies (Hedera spp.) produce the densest and most colorful foliage in full shade and can be grown in hanging baskets. One of the most versatile species, English ivy (H. helix), grows up to 50 feet long and has lustrous, lobed leaves. Its many cultivars include the small-foliaged Baltica; the white-green variegated Zebra; the toothed, glossy Morrocco; and the slow-growing, yellow-green Gold Child. Algerian ivy (H. canariensis) grows up to 30 feet long and thrives in full shade. This evergreen vine has large, glossy leaves and grows in a range of cultivars, from the Striata, which has yellow-margined foliage, to the Marginomaculata, which has variegated leaves.