One thing is for certain...you have to spend time picking the seed pods off before you clean the vines off the climbing structures. Otherwise all the seeds will drop on the ground, and you will forever have volunteer vines coming up each spring. I collect the ripened seed capsules as the season progresses to save the seeds for trading so that isn't a big problem for me. If you are organized with taking the vine off the trellis it isn't so time consuming. You make a few strategic snips with a pruning shears then tug on the vines and they ought to slide off in sections.

Joseph

so - how many MG seed pods are there on 1 vine? hmmm - are these serious rampant vines? Small city lot - precious perennial plant specimens etc. Am I looking for troubles by planting MG's? Appreciate your feedback. I do feel a little hesitant but you all speak so highly of their beauty.

Even if you miss a few and they reseed they are easy to spot and pull out before they really get growing (if you don't want then to reseed). I usually move any little sprouts I find to a better spot or else just pull them out. Much easier to pull than most weeds!

msbernard - if you plant the Ipomoea tricolor cultivars such as Heavenly Blue,Flying Saucers,Blue Star,Pearly Gates or Wedding Bells,then you shouldn't worry about volunteers because the seeds of these cultivars will not survive the repeated freezes and re-thaws of the cold autumnal and early spring conditions...and if any seeds do happen to survive,there will be very few of them...
So you can just enjoy(!) without any concerns...

I am in zone 6B, about a zone warmer than ron c's, but in my yard I got PLENTY of volunteers from Heavenly Blue and Flying Saucers.

cranebill

cranebill - I'm very surprised to hear that...I have never had even 1 single Ipomoea tricolor volunteer for me in over 4 decades of growing these...even when I lived in Maplewood,NJ which is fairly close to New York City...
I knew one lady who got a few volunteers,but she had a very fine porous mulch all around her plants,and this acted to somehow protect the seeds...
Were the seeds that volunteered for you protected by any type of mulch,or did your seeds fall on regular unprotected ground and still germinate in the Spring(?)...if so,you are the first person I have encountered on any of the GW's that has had this experience...

I and many MG collectors that I know have been looking for Ipomoea tricolor that will dependably re-plant in a zone where the ground freezes...

I would be very (!)interested to trade you for some of the seeds of the types of Ipomoea tricolor that you have that will survive the winter in your zone...

Please let me know...

Ron