Had to share a photo of the buds on my vigna caracalla, I am so excited, I planted from seed in 2003, gave to a friend here in Ohio, she never seen a bloom on the vine, but kept in her greenhouse all this time, after I lost my plants during the power outage and then the flood, she offered my baby back to me and lookie what I have, buds!!! This plant is totally covered with them!!! I know I have a ways to go yet to see bloom, but had to share!
Laurrie-
Congrats!!
I am happy for you, and have to laugh...I've been looking at mine, (like an expectant mother), every day, hovering over my buds, too! lol...
That was very sweet of her to give it back to you...and they really do bloom better with age. My young seedlings this year have no chance of catching up to the ones that are several years old...
I hope you have a bloom EXPLOSION! lol...
-T
Won't be long now, you will be rewarded with the fragrance that I dream of smelling all through the long winter. It is my favorite scent. Wish I could bottle it. LOL
Mine has been blooming for a while now, you can usually find me battling ants to get my nose into the clusters. Ahhhhh, heaven.
I can hardly wait for you to get a whiff of them. You will be as hooked as I am. :~)
Try to be patient, it will all be worth it.
I have 3 pots of them actually, the one pot has one vine (the one from 2003), another pot on otherside of front door has 3 large vines in from Parks, and yet another pot out on patio has 3 seedlings I started this spring, the ONLY thing I started from seed in a pot and they grew, I also started some datura, brugmansia and mexican petunia, that was all I could get to this year. The only vine not showing buds is the one I started from seed this year, the others are just literally loaded with them.
Last year my vine was riddled also with ants, but none this year, I am wondering why? But then last year I think they ate off my buds too!!!!
I parked all 3 pots out front so when I come and go I will get to smell them, I have waited sooo long, if I can only get one sniff this year I will be happy LOL
So Taylor and Donna, how large (tall - long) are your vines now with you being in warmer climates than I am, mine stretch out to probably 8-10 feet, but I have them wound around and around the stakes in their pots, and they are a rather dense vine aren't they, tons of leaves and now tons of little buds everywhere!! I bet on the one pot alone, I could count over 100 buds!! JUST TOO EXCITING!!!
Mine are a little taller, but not "dense" with foliage. Sounds like yours are doing a lot better than mine. I've tried different spots in the garden to see what they like best, and they definitely like a lot of sun here and sharp drainage.
The best mine have ever done they were on a baking west brick wall and under the eave of the house, so not much water at all(and they were in pots)...
This year I have them in a spot where I want them(in the ground), and they are doing well, but not as well as last year on that west wall...
I only have one vine on each pole, though, not three...maybe I need to add more next year, lol...
Wow, the thought of 3 of these monsters together in 1 pot intimidates me. LOL These plants are massive. Laurrie, remember the vine fences I put up last year? Well the one with the green plastic fencing is where one of my vignas are, and it is 15ft long. The vigna engulfs it & I am constantly pulling vines back over from the neighbors to try to keep it contained. I also have some growing in pots, but only one per pot, and they are reeeeeally big. Taylor keeps hers outdoors in the winter, (don't you?) but you can't, so you're gonna have to whack them off in the Fall like you do with your brugs so you can bring them inside. Unless you can get Robert to build you a sunroom on the back of the house. hehehehe
Use the "for him to start his veggies in" scheme. ;~)
Ants, I hate them soooo much. They DO chew off the buds, it just gets to where there are so many buds that you stop missing them. But its like the buggers can't wait to get inside and feast.
I have vignas growing on the west, east & south, getting from full sun to partial sun. 2 are in the ground, sticky clay soil, and 2 are in pots with potting soil and I see no difference in performance. They all thrive. I do not fertilize them at all.
But I will say, along with everything else, the weather this year has effected everything. Nothing is as big as last year. Even my blue dawn that engulfed its fence last year, is considerably smaller. I am sure that is probably all that is wrong with yours Taylor.
I am so anxiously awaiting blooms for you both, it only took 3 years, but Laurrie is finally gonna get to smell what I have been raving about. LOL The last 2 summers I have went on & on about the smell. Last summer I was on the phone with her while I was sitting along side them and I kept trying to describe the smell. Remember that phone call when you get your first whiff Laurrie. Then call me. HAR
Donna! I want to see pictures!
This HAS been a really weird year...I planted moonflower vine in May, and usually by this time of year, they are huge and blooming...my sad little creatures are still less than a foot tall!! bummer! It has been a real disappointment...
Yes, my corkscrew are in the ground. I've lost them to winter before, but always in the wettest part of winter, so figured it was more the water than the temperature. I ammended the soil with a lot of sharp draining stuff(we have clay, too) like perlite, small bark chips, sand, etc. That seemed to make a BIG difference and they all came back this year.
-T
You want to see pictures. HAR I just got a new camera last week, and now when I take my oatmeal and coffee out to the corkscrew fence to eat, I have my camera too. I just came in from there and it is amazing that I never tire of taking pictures of them. LOL
So here is one I took this morning. Hope it does not lose any detail being resized.
And look at this one. The ants are so stupid they are trying to farm their aphid inside spent blooms. LOL Oh well, I am not complaining. At least they fall off & their gone unlike when they farm them on the plant.
silly me...I should have been more specific...
While I always love seeing the blooms, what I was really interested in seeing was the MASS of your vine(s)...
...please?
-T
Oh, they are not a mass yet this year. If they follow true to form, they will have a big growth spurt in mid-August when the days and nights are unbearably hot. But who knows with the way everything else is growing so spindly.
I took the hedge trimmers to my Thunbergias grandifloras last night. I am sick of them. Like an idiot, I planted 3 together. A blue sky & 2 albas. I had no idea they got so big and the fence I made for them is only about 9 ft long. DH was always griping about it cuz it is next to the walkway to the side gate & trash cans. I decided they are not worth the hassle for the short bloom time, so I made arrangements to give them away this Fall and them I whacked them back. LOL Of course THEY were not at all stunted by the weather! Figures, huh? LOL
I already have some new clematis on order from Park for the spot. Fickle, ain't I? hehe
Well, I know what you mean about their bloom time, and it is always nice to change things up every once in a while...
Personally, I like that they bloom when most everything is finished...but, they really aren't a "front and center" vine, ...more like a "on the side of the house" kinda vine...lol...
What new clematis are you pining over?
I bought a Clematis Minuet for fall shipping. It is supposed to bloom all summer! I can live with that. LOL And I should be able to squeeze another 1 or 2 in with it, and I am ALWAYS happy to have room for clematis. :~)
Nice choice! Clematis are ALWAYS a nice choice, lol...
-T
WOW Donna!!! I just love the closeup shots this camera takes!!!! What kind did you get and do you just love it or what!!!!!????? You know I am dying to get a new one, perhaps this is one for me as well, my old one is so trying at times I think I will throw it in the creek!!!!
Great photos, and yes, oh my yes, do I remember you and that torturing phone call LOLOL, I can't wait, literally, I peek all darn day long at them, I better stop that or I might just make them shrivel up and fall off LOL, weird though that I don't have ants hovering all over mine! we have ants galore here, but not on these vines, they are all over the trumpet vines, etc. maybe because they are in pots?
LOL Robert will have to give in someday to that sunroom won't he? LOL he says when we build our cabin on the other property that I can have a whole greenhouse, hmmmmmmm that might be awhile, but yes, Julie chopped the one I gave her down to the soil line in the winter and ceased the watering, this spring she watered and up it shot, she had it wound all around a little "ladder" looking thing and it has far surpassed it and you can't even find it now under all the growth, I potted it up a little larger and only used the soil from outback from the garden, but they seem to like it that way.
Here is a photo of mine in the pots today, one on left of doorway is the 3 year old one vine in that pot, on right of door is the 3 vines. I have them twined and re wound all around each other, they would be touching the rooftops if I didn't keep them in check. They are both pretty lush, they are on the north side of house and get early morning sun and late evening sun only, shaded from around 11 to 5 or 6 pm. I water 2-3 times per day each pot, I only use my alfalfa on them with no other fert, but they seem to love it there, so I will leave them alone for now.
Cheyenne looks thrilled that you made her stand in the shot! HAR Poor kid.
Your vines look healthy, really green & on their way to monsterhood. You may not have ants yet cuz the new cement threw them off the scent, you think? they'll find them, you can count on it.
I emailed you the link to my camera, its still on sale. Jenn just came in and I made her look at poor Chey standing in the shot. She laughed and then said "Cheyennes really pretty, isn't she?" She is growing up so fast! Watch out daddy, boys are not too far out.
You better call me when you get your first bloom & take your first whiff.
My corkscrew vine is being totally devoured by little beetles. Some are yellow with dark spots and some are pink with dark spots or stripes. I mean they are skeletonizing all of the foliage. I had a stem with buds and only one made it to being a full size bloom. But when it was fully open it turned from white to a muddy yellow color, almost like parchment. Is that normal?
I prefer to garden organically so I don't want to use chemicals on my vine but I have to do something to get rid of these darn beetles. I was thinking of trying these recipes Ma Vie Rose posted. She didn't mention corkscrew vine when she posted these.
"do not forget to alternately foliar spray ur plant with H2O2 and alcohol with some palmolive soap to avoid insect bugs infestation. i better post formula just in case
using bottle sprayer:
2 tbsp. H2O2 or alcohol
1 tbsp Palmolive soap [is wetter than water which is why everything u wash in it is squeaky clean]
1 tbsp MG 15/30/15
fill the rest of the bottle with water. spray on the plant.
for foliar feeding:
1 c H2O2 or alcohol
1/4 c Palmolive soap
1/4 c MG 15/30/15*
* using the MG will be ur indicator on the foliar feeding bootle that the concoction has ran out. so refill again if need be. since u are spraying the bugs to go away, why not feed the leaves too LOL! several jobs incorporated into one."
Has anyone ever tried these recipes or something similar on the corkscrew vine?
Also mine is in full sun. Aside from the pests, it seemed happy and has good color. Do you think moving it to afternoon shade would help?
LOL hey now, she DID want to get in the picture, not sure she knew I would be sharing with the world or you can bet she would have taken off her play shirt and put on a good / school shirt LOLOLOL
Here is another shot on the very right is the one that is from 2003 (one vine). I have some occasional yellowing and dropping of leaves that I find around base when I add my alfalfa tea, but not alot of bugs, I do find daddy-long-legs in there when I am poking my nose in. Wonder if you are right about the new cement? never thought about that??? Maybe I will get some ants later on when they start sniffing my buds then I will have to really keep an eye out that they don't eat all those lovely buds!
You better get some kind of trellis rigged up behind them, or a piece of lattice? So you can spread it out a bit and give the flowers room. I have seen what you can do with lattice, so I am sure you will come up with something creative, like a lattice door frame or an arbor.
Yes, I am sure she just jumped in front of the camera...HAR
NoH20, I have been fighting "Flea Beetles" on my brugs, never had them before until last week, and I have been spraying them with soapy water with no success. (I have not tried the recipes you listed) I finally just started grabbing them & pinching them, (hard to smash with those shells) and blasting the plants with water everytime I walk by. Don't know that its working but there are less of them I think, but I may have to resort to something else. Hope you find something that works & please post if you do.
This message was edited Jul 29, 2005 8:06 AM
I will let you know how it works, PM. The greenish yellow ones are definitely spotted cucumber beetles. I have a few on my brugs and dahlias but not enough to create a problem.....YET. But they really have skeletonized the corkscrew vine. I am going to mix up a batch and spray a few leaves on all the plants I see them on. I don't want to risk spraying the whole plant in case it has an adverse reaction.
You should not have any ill effects, unless it is from the alcohol.
Wonder what it's purpose is? I know the soapy water I used had no effect on the beetles. Maybe I will add some alcohol & see what happens.
NoH20, I just went out & added 2 tbl alcohol to my soapy water spray bottle & started spraying the beetles I could find. It did kill them but it took a few seconds to notice any reaction. I made sure I sprayed a good shot on them too so they would have to walk through it and get it on their belly. So the alcohol is very effective!
YIKERS!!! You mean these puppies are still going to keep growing, I guess I just thought they would slow down when they started budding!!! That settles it, I will have to get creative I guess and get busy on that rig up for them to climb around my door!!! Robert better get busy adding the storm door first, would hate to have him mess up my new arbor LOL
I don't know if yours will get as big as mine, but if so, then mid-august you can expect a big growth spurt. I just assumed thats when mine went nuts because of the heat night & day, instead of just during the day. You will have to be the pioneer for your area and tell us what happens.
Ok well that makes sense then, here last 2 days the temps have been in mid 80's during day and 60 at night, we are definitely going thru a cold spell right now, I love it and so do all the plants!
I will just have to keep snapping photos so you can watch what happens in my zone LOL
PudgyMudpies, how do your vines look? The alcohol didn't bother them? I didn't get a chance to do mine last night so I will do it later today when it is a little cooler. I think I will also give it some alfalfa/compost tea.
I only have the beetles on my iochroma & brugs, but I have been going out & spraying every couple of hours. I only found 4 this morning and I sprayed them. The leaves look fine, no sign of any ill effects.
Great! Thanks.
Just adding another updated picture of the buds :)
~Laurrie
They look so beautiful. **Sob** My vine doesn't have any buds and not many leaves either. I have been picking off the skeletonized ones and that doesn't leave (no pun intended) too many on the plant.
PudgyMudpies, I have been using that spray on the plants that have cucumber beetles which includes my corkscrew vine, brugs, sweet peas, tomatoes, glads, dahlias, petunias, etc. It only seems to affect the ones that get hit by the spray directly and certainly doesn't deter any that come later. It doesn't seem to hurt the foliage but it fries the flower petals even when used in the evening.
I also think the beetles have been communicating with each other because as soon as I get within 5 ft of a plant now they all fly away. That would be okay but I think they settle back down on the plant as soon as I walk away and then laugh at me behind my back. :^(
Looking good Laurrie, another week or 2 and you will have flowers!
NoH20, sounds just like what I am finding on my brugs. Does not deter them from coming back here either & getting harder to sneak up on the little buggers to spray them! I hate them. Alot.
Hmmmm, Lupinelover used to have a homemade recipe she swore by. I will see if I can find it.
I found it. It looks pretty similar to Ma Vie's with the addition of garlic. Lupy uses fresh garlic; I wonder if crushed garlic in a jar would work?
Someone on the thread used it specifically for cucumber beetles and said it worked so I guess it is worth a try.
http://davesgarden.com/forums/t/387555/
Hmm, I just read the thread, but I am still not clear if this only kills on contact like our water/soap/alcohol does or if it has repellent qualities? What do you think?
I suspect it might be something you have to take with you whenever you tour the garden and spray things as you see them. However several people on the thread raved about how effective it was so maybe it would be worth the effort to carry the spray bottle around. I know I am really tired of seeing holes in all my flowers.
I was reading about the life cycle of the cucumber beetle and it sounds like it lays eggs in the cracks and crevices of the soil surface. I am wondering if it would help to spray that daily.
Just adding another photo
How exciting! And why don't you have a problem with cucumber beetles? You aren't that far away from me. LOL Right now I am not seeing any cucumber beetles on my vine, possibly because there are hardly any leaves on it. :^[
LOL but I DO have them, not many, but the ones I spot, I quickly smoosh!
I must have my vines in a "good" spot, they are tucked right up on each side of my front door which faces N, they are under the eaves and are shaded around noon until 5 or so, so they get morning and evening sun. I have spotted little bugs (seem harmless) and some ants around in that vicinity, but so far they are NOT eating up all my leaves and buds, YET!! I will kill those buggers if they dont' allow me to see and sniff a bloom this year!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! so they better watch out LOL
Mine is getting full sun; I wonder if that is too much for it?
I wish I had noticed the beetles as soon as they arrived and started squishing them then. I do that with Japanese beetles and leave the dead bodies on the plant. Honestly it works wonders. I don't get more than 30 Japanese beetles all summer even though the yards around me are full of them. My theory is that if I kill the scouts when they first arrive and leave the corpses on the plants, the next wave finds the dead bodies and decides to move the party elsewhere. The problem with the cucumber beetles is that they are a LOT faster than the Japanese beetles. While I am squishing one of them all the others are taking off. Maybe if I start squishing earlier in the season it will help. I hate those buggers......no pun intended.
I am not sure, I had mine inside in spring, so when it was safe to move outdoors, I just automatically put mine there, praying they would bloom and I could see and smell them each time I came or went out the front door. What does it say in the Plant files??? about sun/shade, etc. I don't believe I ever looked! gonna do that now.....
also, those cucumber beetles, I have found maybe a handful less than a dozen so far this year, so if I start finding more, I will definitely have to do more about it. Your theory makes sense, I certainly wouldn't venture where I had seen a dead "body" LOL
