Morning Glories: Alamo Vine, 1 by beckygardener

beckygardener wrote:
Merremia dissecta is apparently a native of Texas. It is a host plant for the Painted Crescent butterfly caterpillars. (Unfortunately, we don't have those butterflies in FL.) It is a short-lived perennial that lasts 3 or so years. It is considered a noxious weed, but I suspect in a container it is well-behaved. At least mine has been. It is the slowest growing of all the vines I have grown this year. It just doesn't seem to want to get very big at all. I started it from seed over the winter on my window ledge. It is still in a small pot. At one point it almost died from neglect (when I was taking care of my dying mother). But made a nice comeback when it finally got a little attention. :-)

It was on the noxious weed list in FL at one time, but it doesn't appeared to be listed on any of the current lists.

It would seem that I missed the very first bloom on my vine, as I recently discovered a big, fat seed pod! I am seeing several buds on it now. I hope I don't miss them too. (I am looking daily for them, so I shouldn't.)

What I like about this vine? The leaves of course! The leaves are unique and very attractive. The leaves don't seem to get very big. I think the forming seed pods are cool! And I understand that the blooms last during the day. (Which I find a huge plus!) Hopefully, will get a chance to see a bloom within the week. :-)