The Carlsons probably weren't thinking about a citywide trend when they planted their vines back in 1995.
Bob and Colette Carlson have lived next to the concrete sound barrier along St. Albert Trail near Savoy Place since 1993. "Looking at a grey wall wasn't very appealing," Colette says, so they planted some Virginia creepers on their side of it 16 years ago.
The vines eventually crawled up and over the barrier, transforming it into an emerald waterfall that shone out on the trail. A few other neighbours did the same, creating a few splashes of green along the drab grey ribbon.
Earlier this year, they got a letter from the city. Turns out someone had noticed their vines and wanted everyone along the barrier to grow them — part of an effort to green the Trail.
It's a great idea, says Bob, and he hopes it will lead to a greener barrier in a decade or so. "If anything, it's going to make the city look friendlier."
The green wall
The barrier itself runs from Hebert Road to Sturgeon Road along St. Albert Trail, and is meant to reduce noise. Judging from the din in the Carlsons' backyard garden, it doesn't work so well, but you get used to it, Bob says.
Mayor Nolan Crouse says he got the idea for the program when he saw the vines at Savoy Place. "I liked the idea of the green wall," he says, so this spring he asked staff to send a letter to the 57 homes that backed onto the Trail. The letter asked residents to use the enclosed coupons for five free plants from Hole's Greenhouse to grow hops or clematis vines on their side of the barrier.
About 14 residents have taken up the offer so far, says Joan Barber, the city's tourism development co-ordinator. The $1,376 program comes out of the city's beautification fund, which is also responsible for those big planters found on city street corners.
"The ones planted this year are just starting to come over [the wall]," she notes. "We really won't see the full effects of the program until next year." The city could have planted vines on the public side of the wall, she explains, but then they would have to maintain them.
St. Albert Trail is the city's showcase street, Crouse says, and this is a relatively cheap way to improve its image. "The alternative is to make it uglier or do nothing." An improved trail could draw more visitors and businesses to come to town.
Hops are a vigorous perennial vine with broad, lime-green leaves and cones that are sometimes used in beer production, says Jim Hole of Hole's Greenhouse. "It makes a very good solid screen or green wall," he notes, but the vines die back to ground level each year.
Clematis branches, in comparison, stick around all year, sprouting new foliage in the spring. "The really vigorous one is the alpine clematis," a blue-blossomed beauty that can grow to eight metres tall.
There are many types of clematis, most with brilliant blue, pink, white or purple blossoms. "They're pretty darn tough," Hole says, and should cover most walls in a couple of years. Avoid the yellow clematis, though — it's a noxious weed and shouldn't be planted.
Crouse had high praise for everyone who took part in the program. "The people who started this on Savoy Place should be commended … they've been the leaders."
Barber says she plans to expand the program to Deer Ridge next year if council agrees to fund it.
For details on the program, call Barber at 780-459-1725.
