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passion vine worth the work??
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Posted by tracyjo z11, sunset z24 (My Page) on Thu, Jun 2, 05 at 17:05
I am enchanted by the flowers on the passion vine - so exotic - but i hear they get huge ugly caterpillars like crazy. i think i can handle the untangling of the vines part, but will the caterpillars creep me out? most small bugs i don't mind squishing between my fingers, but grubs gross me out even when i squish them with a shovel. yech. was/is your passion vine (passiflora alatocaerulea/pfordtii), fruitless, most widely sold and least susceptible to 'pillars per sunset).
i'm 4 blocks from the ocean & was only planning it to have sun after (say) 2p.m. - west facing alcove.
thanks heaps everybody!tjk |
Follow-Up Postings:
RE: passion vine worth the work??
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| Mine never got grubs, but it suckered all OVER the place. It took years of roundup to get rid of it. So think long and hard about it before you put it in the ground. Sue |
RE: passion vine worth the work??
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| When my in-laws lived on our place they planted a Passion Vine. They have been gone about 8 years now, but the vine is still here. I have cut, hacked, yanked and now am going to try Round-up. Can't get rid of the stuff. Just when I think I've got it taken care of, it pops up somewhere else. |
RE: passion vine worth the work??
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- Posted by Dis_ z9 CA (My Page) on
Thu, Jun 2, 05 at 18:55
| Oooh, sounds vigourous. I think I want this one! I love the flowers. I tried Passiflora edulis once and it died. I think I will try the fruitless next. |
RE: passion vine worth the work??
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- Posted by BecR zone 9 CA 19 (My Page) on
Thu, Jun 2, 05 at 18:57
| My neighbor planted a passion vine on the fenceline of our adjoining properties a couple years ago---her plant died over this past winter. Guess what I have growing on my side?! Yup, and it is about 10 ft now (this year alone), so I think it really likes it here on my side. I pulled at least 2-3 other suckers from this plant, before I realized she had lost hers. Mine has not bloomed yet, but she says it should be purple (hers hadn't bloomed either). If I get any more suckers, I will pot them up for her, so that she can try again in a more protected spot. I have only once seen a purple passion vine in bloom (more coastal locale than here)---what a gorgeous flower (and scent!). To me, it will be worth it if I can get this one to bloom, to put up with suckers here and there. I just adore this vine! Just my 2 cents. Becky |
RE: passion vine worth the work??
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| I love 'em. Some are noxious weeds. Others are better behaved. The common ones seem the most weedy. i have two side by side. P 'Incense' is a weed that the caterpillars love. The first year it couldn't grow fast enough, before it got eaten. It didn't have any problem keeping up after that year. Next to it is P. vitifolia. This one is better behaved, slower growing, nicer flowers.... It also has nectaries that attract ants that clean the caterpillars off, so I rarely see any caterpillar damage on this one. |
RE: passion vine worth the work??
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| Does anyone here have experience with Passiflora 'Alata'? I picked up a package of seeds on a recent trip. The seeds are from Plants of Distinction. http://www.englishgardenemporium.com/perennials3.html The seed package said this is a tender perennial for zones 7-11. However, various web searches indicate it is less hardy. Thompson and Morgan Seed Co. says it is only hardy to 45F. Another source says it tolerates the low 30's for brief periods. So which is correct? These sources can’t all be right. It’s native to all parts of the Amazon, as well as Amazon, as well as in the gallery forests of the Brazilian cerrados. |
RE: passion vine worth the work??
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| I bought that same seeds and I could not get one to germinate. I finely gave up after four months. Refrigerate/don't refrigerate, soak in passion juice/soak in orange juice/don't soak...the list goes on. I finally just went to plant Plant Depot and bought 3 of them. They are doing great and I've only had them since Mother's Day! |
RE: passion vine worth the work??
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| The most vigorous growing plant on my property here in Orange County is a passion fruit vine that is spreading 30 feet in three different directions and is so healthy looking. The fruit is kind of a pain to eat but I may try juicing them like you would an orange. My neighbor has made an attempt to kill it where it was growing on our joint fence but it came back with a vengence and it looks like he gave up. The vine is covered with white and purple flowers so I should have a lot of fruit soon. It is even starting to grow over the roof of my kids playhouse which looks really picturesque. I have never sprayed it and it doesn't seem to be bothered by bugs, or if it is it is so vigorous they aren't having any effect. |
RE: passion vine worth the work??
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| I don't do any bug patrol on mine either. I love the butterflies and the vine can grow faster then many of them can eat. |
RE: passion vine worth the work??
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| thanks for the comments. About the suckering, I just planted a scarlet passion vine. It's job is to cover an 8 foot metal gazebo, with some training and pruning. I planted a one gallon size into a five gallon plastic pot with the bottom cut out leaving about an 8 inch deep barrier to lateral root spread. Will this stop or reduce the suckers? |
RE: passion vine worth the work??
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| I have mine in a tub with a trellis. I didn't want it to get loose in the ground. I keep it only for Gulf Frittiary catapillers. For some reason I find the flowers very ugly and take them off. Penny |
RE: passion vine worth the work??
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| Until my brother pulled it up this year (thought it was the trumpet vine I wanted gone) I never saw a grub/worm/caterpillar of any type on it in more than 15 years. |
RE: passion vine worth the work??
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- Posted by SusanC Z9/Sunset 17 (My Page) on
Sat, Jun 4, 05 at 12:56
| 4 years ago, we planted a 'Lavender Lady' in a half whiskey barrel. It quickly covered a stretch of lattice that is about 8 feet tall by 15 feet wide, but there's been no problem with suckering since it's in the barrel. I really love this variety because it is vigorous, beautiful, long-blooming and I haven't noticed any caterpillar damage. |
Here is a link that might be useful: 'Lavender Lady'
RE: passion vine worth the work??
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| Searching for something else and found this thread, poppng it back to the top as no one pointed out those "huge ugly caterpillars" become BEAUTIFUL butterflies. Passiflora is a host to the gulf fritillary butterfly (Penny did mention the gulf fritillary cats). I've had noticably more of these butterflies now that I've had the passiflora a few years. When I look at the plants, I see the plants, don't notice the caterpillars or leaf damage. As others mentioned, they do spread. I've been growing my newer varieties in pots. Do have one big honkin specimen in the ground. |
Here is a link that might be useful: Butterflies of Northern Ca - Giuf Fritillary
RE: passion vine worth the work??
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- Posted by sumcool Cen. Coast/s17 (My Page) on
Sun, Jan 15, 06 at 18:37
All this discussion about passiflora has gotten me interested. What do you guys think of planting a passion vine around and above a chicken coop and yard? There's no water to the area, so I'd have to do it by hand. Also, the area is in part shade from euc trees.
TIA
Sumcool |
RE: passion vine worth the work??
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| It's interesting that the only caterpillar to eat passionflower leaves is the gulf fritillary, and it's the only food that they will eat! It's a fairly small, orange and black caterpillar, not scary at all. What's scary is all the roundup people are using! Just pull out the volunteer vines, no need to nuke the planet. |
RE: passion vine worth the work??
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| sumcool - I'd say try it - they need some sun, but overall they're pretty resilient plants. |
RE: passion vine worth the work??
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| My passion flower vine was COVERED with gulf frit caterpillars last summer. They ate EVERY SINGLE LEAF off of that vine-- a huge vine that covered a 20x4 trellis. While I like to see the butterflies, I would prefer having the vine. A bluejay came in a had a nice meal one day - I wish he had spread the news. Any ideas on how to control the cat population WITHOUT poison? |
RE: passion vine worth the work??
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| bhand - if you post that question in the butterfly forum you'll probably have local folks offer to come collect them for you to relocate to their gardens. Quite a bit of dedicated butterfly folks there. Must be the difference in climate and population - I don't know anyone in California that has had anything like that happen. If you don't post in the butterfly forum - try putting out bird feeders, then move them close to your passion vine. A larger bird population will stick around if fed and will cut back all bugs. |
caterpillars eliminated with coffee grinds
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| I have a passion fruit vine covered with caterpillars when I heard about coffee girnds. I put them on and around the vine and hae not had another caterpiller since. |
RE: passion vine worth the work??
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- Posted by baci z10Ca (My Page) on
Mon, Apr 23, 07 at 9:21
I have a couple varieties that used to be in the ground. I dug up roots which were about 3 ft; & have not had a problem with invasiveness. I guess I caught them early. I now have them in 25 gallon containers sitting on top of cinder blocks so the roots can not grow into the ground. They fruited last year in containers. I now believe container growing is the only I personally would grow these plants in Southern CA.
I have noticed certain plants are more subject to being eaten by butterflies than others. There is a red flowering specimen growing at Quail garden that is supposedly resistant to being eaten by butterflies. I do not know the cultivar name, however. |
RE: passion vine worth the work??
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| I planted PASSIFLORA QUADRANGULARIS for its huge flowers. It has large, thick, and unlobed leaves, and I've never seen a gulf frit or its cat on the vine. In back, I planted a blue passiflora as a larva plant for the clouds of beautiful gulf frit butterflies that visit it almost year round. The suckers are easy to pull, and the larva not only keep the plant under control, but go to local schools for the kids to hand raise. =^,,^= |
Here is a link that might be useful: huge flowers
RE: passion vine worth the work??
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- Posted by jkom51 Z9 CA/Sunset 17 (My Page) on
Tue, Apr 24, 07 at 13:28
| Wow, that Passiflora quadrangularis is fabulous! Boy, I can only wish that Gulf fritillary caterpillars would denude my vines - I have to prune them back twice a year (which BTW reduces the butterflies, darn it) to keep them in check! I have the common purple passiflora, small inedible fruit, and it does throw a few seedlings out but since it's mostly surrounded by concrete - one of the advantages of urban gardening! - it's easy to rip them out.
 I prefer the coral passiflora and so do the butterflies. Last year I didn't prune it back and had butterflies in January! This year I whacked it down severely, we had an unusual 2 week cold spell, so it was March before I saw a butterfly again:
 |
RE: passion vine worth the work??
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| Good Point.. those caterpilars are Butterflies in the making.. do you like having butterfies flying around in your garden, pasion vine, milkweed, lantana, check it out.. butterflies are flying flowers!
flowers are tethered butterflies.. |
Here is a link that might be useful: Butterflies are Flowers too
RE: passion vine worth the work??
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I'm in FL. I have a red passion vine that covers a 5' tall wire fence that is 60' long. It has never suckered, it doesn't set seed (only 1 fruit in 5 years, sometimes gets cats, but not enough to do any damage. It blooms year around and during the summer needs to be pruned at least 2x a month. I love it.
Jo |
RE: passion vine worth the work??
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| Passiflora quadrangularis does not attract butterflies, most likely due to the thickness of the leaves. Various caerulea do, and grace my garden almost all year. |
RE: passion vine worth the work??
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| I have 2 passion vines growing on one arched trellis.. I have had them for about 3 years and I love them but I noticed from my trimmings there are a lot of dead stalks etc under the beautiful green. I was contemplating trimming the entire vine down to about a foot from the ground then cleaning all the old stuff off the trellis... What time of year do you think this should be done? |
RE: passion vine worth the work??
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| Just in case, root some cuttings before you whack it back. |
RE: passion vine worth the work??
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Hello to everyone:
I have been looking for a few cuttings of passion vine that produces edible fruit. I will plant them in containers that I will bring inside when the weather gets too cold.(I live in PA) So if anyone has some to share I appreciate it.
I will pay for the postage.
I am also looking for cuttings of other tropical fruits for my winter project. I am setting up a "greenhouse" in my basement to get me thru the boring days of winter, till I can go back outside and enjoy the garden.
Thanks a million and HAPPY NEW GARDENING YEAR |
RE: passion vine worth the work??
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| No. It is not worth the work. I cannot imagine an uglier flower. |
RE: passion vine worth the work??
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| I brought a passion from my Mother's in Houston to transplant in Southern Alabama. It did great the first year on our fence. This year, I had 56 plants pop up in May. Suppose that's why they are also called "May-Pops" .. We have very carefully transplanted each one. My fences on both sides of our 3 acres are covered in the vines with the deep purple flowers ..They are beautiful and the smell is heavenly. Evasive ? I surely do hope so ! The caterpillars are a pain and by every butterfly lover in America I'd be called selfish because I refuse to share the plants with them. I squish the ugly little critters every time I see one. They are worth every bit of the work ! |
RE: passion vine worth the work??
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| i have a passion vine, purple in color. If something touches the flower it closes and will not reopen. Is this common? |
RE: passion vine worth the work??
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We planted a passion vine specifically for the butterflies.
I thought I had it licked: I would plant in a place where the suckers would not be a problem. HA! The mockingbird eats the fruit and wherever he goes, up comes another passion vine. I also have to cut mine to the ground every few years.
The flowers don't show well on passiflora caerulea, the variety the butterflies and caterpillars like. The fruit is yucky and the chickens won't even eat it. The vine looks beat by the end of the season and it is a ton of work controlling it. Is it worth it? It is magical to walk under the arbor in the spring: hundreds of Gulf Fritillaries and huge carpenter bees buzz about. Butterfly magic. It's worth it. By the way, the California Towhee will eat as many cats as it can find. |
RE: passion vine worth the work??
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| Hopflower, You think the passionflowers aren't beautiful? There are so many different and beautiful ones. I have and love my p. Incense even if it pops up all over the place! This picture doesn't do it justice, and I wish you could smell the wonderful scent this passiflora has.
 |
RE: passion vine worth the work??
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| I bought 2 passion vines from a small nursery and the owner told me that the flowers would be as exotic as I was (flirty, i know but he's a great businessman).... turns out it was true! The flowers are green!! It's absolutely gorgeous, the only problem I saw is that the roots are slightly dry and the leaves are 'droopy'... is it too much water? BTW, I bought the vines for mother's day, I made her a butterfly garden and placed in front some milkweeds and small firebush shrubs... my mom's happy ^_^ |
RE: passion vine worth the work??
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| I don't think it would be too much water if the roots are dry. You're a good daughter. :)
Renee |
RE: passion vine worth the work??
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| It is too cold in the winter here for passion vine, but I grew it when I lived by the coast. I planted it to grow on my my north fence which was ugly and I was pleased how fast it covered the fence. I was shocked one day to notice that it went over the fence into my neighbors yard and had completely covered her spa/hot tub. I rang her bell apologized and said if I am allowed in her yard I will remove it. "No no she said, I love it". The next year we had a cold winter which killed it to the ground and I never grew it again. Al |
RE: passion vine worth the work??
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| DON'T KILL THE CATERPILLARS!!!! THEY TURN INTO BEAUTIFUL GULF FRITILLARY BUTTERFLIES!!! In California the passion vine is a butterfly host plant. |
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