10 scrambling Australian native climbers that don't require a trellis
Rather than investing energy in building a self-supporting woody trunk, climbing scramblers use neighbouring plants as their scaffolding. This is what allows them to redirect energy into flowers, fruit and seed. It is one of the most sophisticated survival strategies in the plant kingdom.
Twining glycine climbing through an established eucalyptus — no support required.
The host plant is not harmed, parasitised or weakened. The scrambler simply leans, hooks or twines through existing foliage and moves toward light, using the surrounding vegetation the way a mountain climber uses a rock face.
Hardenbergia violacea scrambling through garden planting without a structure.
This matters for gardeners because it means these Australian native plants require no fence, trellis, wire or post. They can be left to their own devices.
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1. Dusky coral pea (Kennedia rubicunda)
Dusky coral pea produces deep red pea flowers with a yellow-green central marking. The flower structure positions the stamens to contact a bird's head or breast as it probes for nectar. This is one of the more energetic scramblers, capable of reaching three metres through a medium shrub in a single season. In its natural habitat of dry sclerophyll forest and coastal scrub along the eastern seaboard, it scrambles through wattles, banksias and coast tea trees. The long flowering season makes it one of the most reliable winter nectar sources for honeyeaters.
In the garden
Plant beside a medium to large shrub in free-draining soil in full sun to part shade. It is vigorous and will need light management with sharp secateurs after the main flowering flush if it is extending beyond its intended host. Avoid heavy pruning into old wood. It tolerates coastal exposure, poor soils and moderate drought once established.
2. Love creeper (Comesperma volubile)
The scrambling mechanism Love Creeper uses is stem twining: the growing tip rotates in a slow spiral as it extends, finding contact with whatever foliage or stem lies in its path. The contact is light enough that the host plant experiences no compression or constriction. Love creeper uses the same strategy in the wild that it uses in a garden, threading up to reach a position of better light without competing with its neighbours for soil resources.
In the garden
Plant beside a westringia, correa or similar medium shrub and allow it to find its own way through. It establishes best in free-draining soils in full sun to part shade and does not suit heavy clay or waterlogged positions. Use sharp secateurs to trim back after flowering if needed to prevent it extending too far.
3. Purple apple berry (Billardiera longiflora)
Purple apple berry offers two distinct seasons of interest. The small, cream to pale yellow tubular flowers appear in summer, followed by vivid purple-blue berries that persist through autumn and winter. The growing stems are guided by thigmotropism, a directional growth response triggered by physical contact with surrounding stems or branches. The berries are eaten by a wide range of fruit-eating birds including currawongs and silvereyes, which distribute the seed through the surrounding vegetation.
Nolesie, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons
In the garden
Best suited to a sheltered position in part to full shade, planted beside a tree fern, native shrub or into the lower branches of a small understorey tree. It prefers moist, humus-rich, well-drained soil and suits cool temperate gardens across VIC, TAS, SA and NSW. Water regularly through establishment and ollas buried beside the root zone reduce the need for surface irrigation through dry periods.
4. Small-leaved clematis (Clematis microphylla)
Small-leaved clematis is among the most widely distributed native scramblers in Australia. Its scrambling mechanism is leaf petiole twining. It is not the stem but the leaf stalks that act as tendrils, curling around any branch they contact as the plant extends. The cream flowers are produced prolifically in late winter and spring and the fluffy silver seed heads that follow are as ornamental as the flowers. It scrambles naturally through mallee, saltbush and dry sclerophyll shrubs.
Melburnian, CC BY 3.0, via Wikimedia Commons
In the garden
Plant into or beside an established medium to large shrub in full sun and well-drained soil. It is one of the toughest scramblers on this list, tolerating dry summers, alkaline soils and moderate frost. Prune back hard after the seed heads have fully developed if containment is needed — it regenerates readily from the base.
5. Twining glycine (Glycine clandestina)
Twining glycine is one of the most broadly distributed native scramblers, occurring across all states. It has fine, twining stems that carry three-leaflet foliage and small pink to mauve pea flowers in spring and early summer. Like all legumes, it fixes atmospheric nitrogen through root nodule bacteria, improving the soil. Its stems rotate as they grow, seeking contact with any nearby support and coiling loosely. In natural grasslands, it uses kangaroo grass, wallaby grass and small shrubs as its scaffold.
John Tann from Sydney, Australia, CC BY 2.0, via Wikimedia Commons
In the garden
Plant at the base of a medium shrub or through an established native grass clump in free-draining soil using a trowel. It suits sunny to lightly shaded positions and is one of the most drought-tolerant scramblers on this list once established. It requires almost no maintenance and can be left entirely to its own devices.
Why scramblers don't damage their hosts
Native scramblers evolved alongside the shrubs they use as support over tens of thousands of years. Unlike exotic wisterias and ivies, which evolved in entirely different plant communities, Australian scramblers use light contact mechanisms that do not generate the contractile pressure that damages joints and bark. They take light and position, not water or nutrients.
6. Native wisteria (Hardenbergia comptoniana)
Native wisteria is one of the most spectacular flowering scramblers in the Western Australian flora. Its growing tips seek contact with surrounding stems and coil loosely around them, using the structural support of the host without penetrating bark or generating damaging pressure. In the wild it scrambles through banksia, melaleuca and acacia scrub on the sandplains. Honeyeaters and native bees are attracted to the flowers through the late winter flowering period.
Michael Wolf, CC BY-SA 3.0, via Wikimedia Commons
In the garden
Best suited to WA and SA Mediterranean-climate gardens with free-draining sandy or gravelly soil and full sun. Plant beside a banksia, melaleuca or established native shrub of reasonable size and allow it to find its own way through. It does not suit heavy clay or high-rainfall eastern gardens without excellent drainage. Keep fertilisers away from the root zone — it performs best in lean soils.
7. Wax flower (Hoya australis)
Hoya australis is the most widespread Hoya species native to Australia and one of the most unusual scramblers on this list in both its mechanism and its ecology. The thick, waxy leaves are a water-storage adaptation and it uses a combination of stem twining and root adhesion. Its small roots produced along the stem grip bark surfaces as the plant climbs. The fragrant white star-shaped flowers have a scent that intensifies at night, attracting moths as well as native bees. In its natural habitat across QLD, NSW and NT it uses rainforest trees as its support structure.
In the garden
Plant beside a sturdy shrub or small tree in a sheltered position in part to full shade. It suits subtropical and tropical gardens across QLD, NSW and NT and performs well in containers where its root run is contained and the size is manageable. Water regularly through establishment. It does not suit frost-prone positions or exposed full sun in hot climates.
8. Native passionfruit (Passiflora herbertiana)
Native passionfruit is one of the few passionfruit species native to eastern Australia. It has tendrils produced at each leaf node that reach out and coil tightly around any stem or branch they contact. The orange-yellow flowers are produced through spring and summer and are visited by native bees and, critically, the Glasswing butterfly — one of the few native butterflies whose larvae feed exclusively on native Passiflora foliage.
John Moss, Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons
In the garden
Plant beside a medium to large shrub in full sun and free-draining soil in a frost-free position. It is vigorous in warm climates and will need annual management with sharp secateurs or loppers after fruiting to prevent it from extending too far beyond the host. It suits subtropical and warm temperate gardens across QLD and northern NSW.
9. Old man's beard (Clematis aristata)
The scrambling mechanism of Old man's beard is the same leaf petiole twining used by its relative Clematis microphylla. The leaf stalks curl around any stem or branch they contact, providing firm but non-damaging anchorage. In spring it covers itself in masses of small white star-shaped flowers followed by fluffy silver seed heads. Male and female flowers are on separate plants, so planting two individuals near each other maximises fruit and seed set. The flowers attract native bees and small insects in large numbers.
In the garden
Plant at the base of a large shrub or small tree in full sun to part shade. It is one of the most vigorous scramblers on this list and suits a substantial host — a banksia, acacia or leptospermum of two metres or more will accommodate it comfortably. Prune back hard after the seed heads develop to contain the spread. It tolerates moderate drought, poor soils and light frost.
10. Snake vine (Tinospora smilacina)
Snake vine in a garden is a genuine contribution to local biodiversity. The scrambling mechanism is stem twining combined with the plant's natural tendency to produce long, arching stems that drape through and over surrounding vegetation, using the canopy of tropical trees and shrubs as their support with minimal physical attachment. The small yellow-green flowers produced in spring are followed by vivid red-orange berries that are a critical food source for fruit pigeons, figbirds, bowerbirds and a range of other tropical frugivores.
See page for author, CC BY 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons
In the garden
Plant beside a substantial shrub or small tree in a frost-free tropical or subtropical position. It suits QLD, NT and northern WA gardens and performs best in full sun to part shade with regular moisture through the wet season. Allow it to dry out through the dry season — the semi-deciduous habit is natural and the plant will reshoot vigorously with the return of rain. Use gloves when managing stems as the mature woody growth can be rough on bare skin.
Planting scramblers with intention
The scramblers on this list are plants that are specifically designed to find their own way. Placing them beside the right host is the critical decision. A substantial, well-established shrub of similar or greater vigour than the scrambler will accommodate the relationship comfortably.
Twining glycine climbing a Eucalyptus Gunni — the host plant is entirely unaffected.
As a general rule, plant the scrambler at the base of or just beside the intended host, not through it. Watering both plants consistently through the first season gives the host time to establish before the scrambler begins to extend and the relationship will be genuinely balanced from the beginning.
Common apple berry growing naturally.
A light annual prune of the scrambler after flowering keeps the composition tidy without disrupting the ecological value the plant provides to wildlife throughout the year.
What about exotic scramblers?
Exotic species such as ivy and morning glory evolved in entirely different plant communities and use far more aggressive attachment mechanisms. Ivy produces adhesive pads that penetrate and damage bark, while morning glory spreads rapidly by seed and outcompetes native understorey plants for light and soil resources. Both are highly invasive in Australian conditions. If you do want to use a native climber on a fence or structure, there are native options that suit built surfaces without causing damage, and a broader selection of underused native vines and climbing plants worth considering alongside the scramblers here.
Morning glory: a vigorous exotic scrambler that outcompetes native understorey plants.
If you do want to use a native climber on a fence or structure, there are native options that suit built surfaces without causing damage, and a broader selection of underused native vines and climbing plants worth considering alongside the scramblers here.
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A Guide to Australian Native Gardening
How to plan, plant and care for a thriving native garden, whatever your experience level.
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