Does anyone know if passiflora incarnata really is hardy in zone 5b, Michigan? I find several different sources that say different things! I would really like to grow one, but my husband will kill me if I bring home any more plants that have to spend the winter in the house.
passiflora for cold?
Everything I've read says it's hardy to zone 5b. It is also reportedly the hardiest of the passion flowers so if you are going to try ANY passion flower this would be the one to try. Good luck.
I'm suprized no one else responded to this.
I planted three rooted cuttings here a couple of years ago and they didn't make it. I know they were well rooted because I found a fourth one coming up about 3 ft. away from the originals, so it had sent out runners. I was saddened the next spring to find they didn't make it.
Thanks guys! I totally forgot about this thread! I ordered one passi this year but it arrived dead and I got a refund instead of a replacement. Maybe in the spring. . .
Sylvi,
Just curious... Where did you get it from? Good luck.
I got it from Jung Seed. Their watchdog rating isn't so good, but I was ordering from them before I found Dave's, and they have always either sent me good plants or prompt refunds.
Still sounds like good service since they took care of you right away with the refund. Good luck with others if you chose to try again. I love passion flowers. I can say I'm 'hooked'.
I adore tropical plants, the colors and flowers get the best of me. Hubby has put his foot down about how many plants I can store in the kitchen, bedroom, bathroom, living room, etc for the winter, so now I am trying to find tropical-look plants that are hardy in Michigan. So far hardy hibiscus and honeysuckle are doing great for me, but I recently read that my honeysuckle is invasive and now I'm now sure what to do with it.
Invasive plants for us most often will not be invasive for you. I imagine that this will be the case for the honeysuckle but I would read up a bit more before taking my word. Just take into consideration the source of the info that says it's invasive. Example, if you read this at one of the FL extentions websites etc... Another good tropical looking one is castor bean. It will die back for you but I think it would be hardy where you live if I recall correctly. Nice huge leaves and interesting blooms too. Just keep it away from pets and you children. All parts of the plant are toxic. The blooms and seeds more than the rest of the plant but all parts should be handled with caution. Good luck.
Thanks, I am hoping it stays under some control. I planted it on a really ugly chainlink fence because it was labelled fast growing and I do want to see flowers instead of fence. Also, the book said hummingbirds like it, so it sounded like a winner. I also planted wisteria, but I am not impressed so far. It has maybe grown 2 inches all summer. I'll check on castor bean, but I usually try to avoid poisonous things, just in case. I've had morning glories in the past too, they are a lot of fun and die back every winter, but often self seed for me.
The wisteria is invasive here and has "chosen" its own areas to grow in. It an literally strangle trees and constrict houses to the point of tearing them up. I've found that they need quite a while to become established but once they do there's in no stopping them. Maybe they'll do okay in zone 5 too.
Vines for fences in your zone... I don't know much about clematis but it might be an option.
I forgot to mention that clematis are also toxic. It's tough to avoid toxic plants. I tried to avoid them when I started gardening but when I found that some of my absolute favorites (like aristolochias) were toxic I gave up. Now I just try and avoid invasive.
I planted some clematis at my house and at a friend's house. I bought them as dormant boxed and they were coming along nicely until a rabbit severed them all (both houses) just above ground level. They had some new leaves and I read about pruning them hard the first year, so I have hopes for spring. If they don't come up, maybe I'll grow carrots.
lol
Carrots..
The rabits are reason enough to put in some castor bean. lol
Good luck.