Selecting a suitable vine depends on its intended use, location, soil adaptability and type of support. Select vines with dense foliage and rapid growth for screening. Plant vines with fragrant flowers near windows or near porches and patios. Vigorous, tall growing vines such as grapes or wisteria are ideal for growing on a large arbor to give shade, while a vine for decorating a mailbox support should be much smaller in ultimate size. Deciduous vines will shade in summer and let light through in winter when they are bare.
Annual vines allow experimenting with vine designs.
These three types of climbing methods will determine the kind of support needed. Tendrils are slim, flexible, leafless stems that wrap themselves around anything they contact. Grapes are the best known vines that climb by tendrils. Vines that use tendrils to climb will need supports such as wire or thin wood stakes. Twining vines wind their stems around any available support.