Singing the praises of wall shrubs for year-round structure and heft

This week’s Q&A has prompted me to sing the praises of wall shrubs, that group of plants that usefully straddle the common ground between true climbers (plants with lax stems that twist and weave their way upwards, using walls or the branches of other plants as a scaffold) and traditional woody ornamental shrubs.

Trained against a wall or sturdy fence by dint of thoughtful pruning and a system of lateral galvanised wires, to which their young branches are gently tied, they can be used to give a valuable sense of year-round-structure, heft and permanence to even the tiniest outdoor spaces. Wall-trained shrubs also offer the opportunity to grow species that might otherwise be too large and sprawling for a small garden, as well as those that need a particularly sheltered spot, with protection from damaging frosts and cold winds.

Examples that come to mind include the magnificent Magnolia grandiflora, or bull bay as it’s commonly known. Blooming in early summer, this glorious species is prized for its huge, pale, fragrant, cupped flowers and giant evergreen leaves, the underneath of which are covered in the softest brown fuzz.

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Planted as a normal freestanding specimen, it will eventually become a sizeable tree and needs plenty of horizontal space to flex its muscles, slowly reaching a height and spread of up to 15m. But a wall-trained specimen can be kept much more compact, and is a magnificent sight when grown neatly against a high sunny wall where the latter acts as a simple but effective storage heater, as well as the perfect backdrop to its statuesque beauty.

This outstanding species of magnolia is just one of many kinds of large