Passion Flower Vine ( Passiflora caerulea )
I pruned this back in March and its already getting top heavy and attacking people in the walkway again. I’ll have to prune it again this week. Passion flower flowers on new growth not old, so if you do not prune you won’t get as large of a batch of flowers. It is a fast growing vine and you’ll need to give it a quick prune almost weekly and a serious prune monthly during the growing season.
These are tough to germinate from seed, you are better off buying a plant or rooting a cutting off a friend’s plant.
Passion flower dies back in the late fall, leaves turn yellow and fall off and it leafs back out very early in the spring. This one has been flowering for over a month now.
The flowers are amazing, layers upon layers of petals and a large stigma with five stamen around it.
Full to part sun is best for this plant, however mine is in mostly shade except for late afternoon for a few hours. Flowers open when the sun hits the plant.
It prefers moist soil not too wet, not too dry.
It will need support, I have wires running behind the plant that I wrap the vines around.
Butterflies love passion flower vines and you will have caterpillars and cocoons on on the plant. I try not to remove the cocoons when pruning, but that’s a personal preference. {Butterflies that use passion flower vines as hosts include: Gulf Fritillay & Varigated Fritillary, Heliconians } Hummingbirds like this flower as well.
Fruits are edible and usually cooked, they do not taste well raw. They are like blackberries in flavor when cooked into a pie or cobbler.
There are over 600 species of passion flowers found through out the tropical and subtropical climate.
Some passionflower species can only be pollinated by interacting with hummingbirds. The hummingbirds and these species of passion flowers have a symbiotic relationship. Many caterpillars feed on the leaves before changing to butterflies, many other insects find the foliage to be toxic. This toxin also makes the caterpillars toxic to their predators.
Propagate by seed in the spring, or by cutting in the summer.
See also:
Pruning Passion Flower vine
Floridata, Passiflora caerulea
I dont think I’ve ever found a fruit. The birds must beat me to it. Some of the seeds must germinate though, as I’ve been getting volunteers in the dangdest of places..
No I haven’t seen a fruit either.
So far the plant has not reseeded itself. But I’m sure that’s just a matter of time.
This guy is going to town. Only occasional blooms this time of year and it is badly in need of a serious pruning again.
Indestructable.
I moved it from the front doorway it really needed more room and I was tired of beating it back weekly.
It is on a fence now, in afternoon sun, and in semi dry/wet clay. It has regained it’s size recently but is not flowering as much as last summer. That is probably because it is getting less sun.
It is a heavy feeder and needs fertilizer often.