I hate my Maypop Incense with a dirty passion...if only I'd known what I was getting at that RU....Pattie did that piece I gave you at the RU in Jacksonville make it?? I guess I will now have to resort to the next step of expensive poison ivy killer since Roundup weed killer isn't doing it. Planted 2 years ago, it has spread 40 feet from the original plant site. IMO, this stuff might be great if you don't mind your Passion flower free growing like a nature preserve, but I am too anal and orderly for that.
Passion Vine
Man thats scary. I am going to dig up both plants when I get back from vacation and try to find all the suckers. I like the wild, overgrown look but I can't deal with a plant that won't let other things grow.
C
Maypop is the native one and doesn't grow as fast. The Incense is a thug for sure. If you did some that are rooted, plant them in a park or share them at RU.
I don't know the difference but it seems that maypop is pretty aggressive also.
Karen, did you give me a passi? If you did, I didn't get home with it. :( The only ones I have here now are a Lady in Red and one of Lee's luteas.
Sheila, that is the same specie I have. Love it. Many people are wanting that specie.
Tvksi
i still must admit to loving the invasive purple one even if it is agressive and ill behaved! it is the flower that gets everyones attention --it is unique and very pretty--but i have a high tolerance for imperfection ----talk to me a year or two from now and i might have no tolerance at all for the vine!
I just got back indoors from trying yet again to eradicate the purple Maypop...I discovered that it doesn't just spread by the thicker yellowish runners that we are used to seeing, it also spreads with tiny, delicate spider-like roots that are almost impossible to pull up without breaking. I am beginning to think I won't ever get rid of it.
I do want to say that I respect anyone's opinion who loves this plant. It is not my wish to appear argumentative or discouraging, I'm only giving my opinion of it, and I hate it. But that is just me. I hate it because I can't control it. That said, I have OCD and I am a very orderly gardener who does not like spreading and invasive plants that take over where I don't want them to. If you are a carefree and non-worrysome gardener you will probably love it. Love and peace to all Maypop lovers!
edited to add: they ARE beautiful flowers...
This message was edited Jul 17, 2010 11:45 AM
oh well i can not blame you for hating it--far be it from me to decided which plant anyone likes or dislikes : )
if i had a neat orderly garden i wouldn't like it either--so i never thought of you as argumentive--
i enjoy looking at anyones garden-flower box,-atrium-garden dish-pond etc---fun to enjoy all the personalities we jput into our planted areas---
Linda, i would love the blue/purple one. Maybe week after next I could come dig one up if its available.
Thanks so much!
oh please do --that would be fun--let me know when you can come --and see if you find anything else to take too!
Here are some pictures of the fruit of the native Maypop from earlier this season. The fruit in my hand is about 10-12 days old and it gets about twice that size. The fruit is tasty and has a strong Pineapple accent to it. The flavor varies from plant to plant so you might get one that is nasty. If you get one from a nursery, it probably has a decent taste.
The native has a smaller flower that is a very light purple. It is less aggressive but still invasive. The hybrid Incense is larger, more ornate and darker purple. It can be very invasive. Incense isnt really known for its fruit while the native can be grown specifically for that reason.
The native was known as a horrible weed until the invention of Roundup and other pesticides and can be easily managed with multiple doses in spring when the plants are first coming up.
Incense is a man made hybrid of Maypop and Passiflora cinnicata. It can not pollinate other flowers but other flowers can pollinate it.
The vine is excellent for shading the south portion of the house in summer while dying back and allowing full sun to heat the house in the winter.
This may not be a good choice for a small garden or yard.
Oh, I hope someone brings Maypop and passionflower vines to trade at the fall roundup! I would love to have some! I have lots of wild space on my property so no worries about an invasion.