Potato Vine

Potato Vine (Solanum laxum, still widely sold under its older name Solanum jasminoides) is the climber for a bare fence that needs covering this season rather than in three years. It twines to about 5m with a 3m spread and carries clusters of small white flowers with yellow centres through the warm months. Growth is genuinely fast, which is the best reason to buy it and the reason to keep secateurs nearby.

Why you'll love it

• Cover in a single season. On a warm site with water it runs several metres in its first year, so a wire fence or lattice panel disappears quickly.
• It climbs itself. The stems twine around wire, mesh and lattice with no tying in.
• Tough once established. Drought tolerant, heat tolerant and salt tolerant, so it copes with a hot western fence or a coastal boundary.
• Bees and butterflies work it. Open white star flowers come in flushes from spring into autumn and are easy for pollinators to reach.

Where it works best

Fence and trellis screening. Plant 2m apart along the run. It spreads sideways more than most climbers, so tighter spacing only builds a tangle to thin out later.

Balconies and courtyards. A pot at least 500mm wide with a trellis behind it gives a green wall in a small footprint, if you keep the water up in summer.

Coastal gardens. Salt tolerance suits a beachside fence line, though it does better with shelter from onshore wind.

Growing potato vine in Australia

Position and climate. Full sun gives the heaviest flowering; part shade thins the display. It suits subtropical, warm temperate, cool temperate and Mediterranean gardens, and takes light frost only. In colder districts give it a north facing wall and expect hard frost to burn the top growth, which reshoots from the base in spring.

Soil. Any reasonable garden soil that drains. Dig compost through the bed first, and on heavy clay plant on a low mound. Mulch 75mm deep, clear of the stems.

Water and feed. Deep soak twice a week through the first summer, then a soak in dry spells. A complete slow release fertiliser in early spring and again in mid summer keeps growth and flowering moving.

Pruning. This is not a plant you can ignore. Cut it back hard after the main flowering flush and shorten wayward runners. Left alone it builds a heavy woody thatch over thin growth, so one annual prune keeps it leafy from the base up.

What to expect when it arrives

We grow it in two sizes. Tube stock is a young single stemmed plant with 15 to 25cm of growth, the sensible choice for a long fence because it catches up within a season. The 140mm size comes in packs of ten, already branched and ready to run.

Stems are flexible, so expect a little leaf drop in the box and a quiet fortnight after planting. Tie the leading stems to your support straight away. Plants are delivered Australia wide, with delivery from $29.95 and a minimum order of $300 before delivery, and every plant carries our 30 day healthy plant guarantee.

Plant care guides and related reading

• Browse the full climbing plant range
• Plants that soften fences and retaining walls
• Compare other fast growing plants
• Plants suited to coastal gardens

Common questions

How fast does potato vine grow?

Fast. With regular water it puts on two to three metres in its first full season and fills its 5m by 3m frame within two or three years. Growth slows in cool temperate gardens and through winter.

Is it safe around pets and children?

No. Potato vine belongs to the nightshade family, and both the foliage and the small berries are toxic if eaten. Site it away from where dogs and small children graze, and pick up prunings rather than leaving them on the lawn.

Will it damage my fence?

It twines rather than clinging with aerial roots, so it does not mark or lift paint the way a self clinging climber does. It gets heavy with age, so fix lattice panels properly first.