It's not too late, JD. Cardinal climber is pretty fast grower. I've found with this one, that once I plant it, I ALWAYS have it, as it self seeds freely for the next year. Hyacinth is slow at first, but takes off. The firecracker plant you could buy and get a fall blooming. I also started the scarlet runner bean a little late, but it's coming along. Whatever flowers I get for hummies is worth it to me!

Thanks so much for the encouragement. So I'm assuming that you're implying that the hummers like all three of those vines?
Thanks again.
JD

Mina lobata or Ipomoea lobata thrives in the heat, from what I've read. It's definitely too late to start one from seed, but if you can get it locally, and if it's a nice size, give it a shot. At least the migrating hummers will get to enjoy it. I grew it a few years ago and I recall it blooming in September and went thru frost. I left the vine & seedpods up, but it never reseeded. I tried again the following year, but the woodchuck mowed it down. I'm trying again this year, in a new spot that gets ALOT of hot sun. It should do well there eventually. Definitely worth it, even if it's a late season bloomer.

I grew a cardinal vine last year and neglected to get rid of it. I left about 2' up and just as I was getting ready to rip it out during spring cleanup, I spotted green growth on it. It was against the house, so that may have let act as a perennial (and that's a first for me!). A must have for the hummer garden.

If you have the tolerance for heavy reseeding, I would recommend a thug, Ipomoea coccinea "Orange Noah". It's probably the least attractive of all morning glories (large foliage compared to the tiny blooms), but the hummers go crazy over it. I've been trying to eradicate it from the area shown below, but it's impossible. I relocated a few seedlings to a fence between my yard & the neighbors. They have an unruly, unpruned Rose of Sharon, that surprisingly, the hummers like. The vine grows up my fence and latches onto their ROS and the hummers are extremely happy.

I had cardinal climber last year and they used it a good bit. I sunk two 4x4 s in my back yard about 10ft apart , then attached two horizontal cables top and bottom, then attached twine vertical about every 6inches to that and let the vine grow on the that. As said before it grows pretty fast. I also have coral honeysuckle and golflame honeysuckle . Coral seems to be a better hummer draw of all vines.

I have grown Cardinal climber for 3 years now - start it from seed. It is very easy to grow from seed. I grow it on a natural teepee trellis made from branches. My plants are only 4-5 inches high right now, but it is a fast grower and reaches between 10-15 feet in height. It doesn't start to bloom until mid-August or so. But the hummers love it, and visit the blooms for the last month before they migrate south.

I have a cardinal climber vine that I started from seed early in the spring, then planted outside..It is now over 10ft tall. The seed package says it should bloom within 50 days but it is not blooming..The vine has finely cut feather foliage and dark stems like to one above with the hummingbird. What can I do???..
thanks