Hi folks - I'm really enjoying these plants. I did read that it can take up to a year to germinate, so it sounds like summer cuttings are probably the best bet. Would there be a chance of getting a bloom this year from a cutting?
I'll be in NY for a couple of weeks in early July and would love to bring some back with me.
Would someone be willing to share some for postage - or possibly some seed trades? (Although I won't know what I have to trade until I get back to NY)
I am definitely not a variety snob - I think my first one will be a treasured child even if not a lofty pedigree. Are there some that are lower maintenance? Some that bloom more prolifically than others?
Can someone recommend any passiflora growing sites?
One caveat here - are these prone to viruses or contamination of other plants? If this is a risky plant to transport, I'll just have to admire from afar.
Passifloras are really catching my eye
It seems to me, and I could be wrong, that incense and caerulea seems to be the most suseptable to mosaic virus. Incarnata seems impervious to all except the gulf frit catterpillars.
Here is a great site with good info and pics
http://www.passionflow.co.uk/index.htm
Also, this site has some really good links
http://www.passiflora.org/
sbarr, I can send you a small Incarnata plant if you think it can make the hot trip. Temps are in the upper 80's to low 90's these days, here. I dunno if it will bloom this year or not, it's my first year with these.
I got some small plants from my sister this spring (she has them popping up everywhere - I presume these are seedlings from last summer). I think I can tease up an 18 inch long plant.
Shortly after I got them (she gave them to me in the pot in the pic) I teased out a few to plant in the ground. They got very unhappy for a while, but eventually recovered.
LMK if you want to give this a try . . . I'm clueless, but willing to give it a shot.
Cheri'
I have an Alata seedling from seed sown in January.. and can do cuttings of some others. e-mail me if interested. Had incense and caerula for two years but this is the first year the caerula blooms for me.
Sandra,
I have a few seeds left that are supposed to be from a red blooming variety..Cannot swear to it, mine have not bloomed as of yet.. They germinate very easily tho..I also have several seedlings but I don't think they would survive the trip.. It is just so hot here, and they are small.. Let me know if you want a few seeds..
Larkie
I have P.Incarnata 'Alba' seeds in late summer that I can send you, It's a rarer white form that grows naturally here on our farm in the Ozarks.
I would find out from the site if they can get a gallon plant or a starter for you. The season is short for them. There are several varities that can take their cold and be back next spring. They would be the best source right now. With all the jitters about what's happening I would seek a local solution, in this case there is one.
Hi Sandra, I did some research about Passifloras and viruses when my P. Incense started showing the Cucumber Mosaic Virus. See this link: http://www.countyofsb.org/agcomm/cmv.htm
I found that Passifloras, like many tropicals, are particularly susceptible to viruses, but in most cases, they can live with them without being affected. The P. Incense Passiflora was propagated from a parent plant which was known to be infected with the Cucumber Mosaic Virus (CMV). Therefore, all cuttings taken from that plant carried the virus also. There has since been created a new P. Incense, called "Allspice," which does not contain the CMV.
I wrote to Logee's, Monterey Bay Nurseries, and San Marcos Growers for information about this virus and other viruses.
This is a very helpful response from Byron Martin the owner of Logee's:
"The hybrid Incense is in fact infected with a virus as are many of the Passiflora hybrids grown commercially. We have been growing this cultivar for many years and from time to time does show the mottling in the leaves. Unfortunately, it is true that this does reduce the vigor of the plant."
"I don't know the clone "Allspice;" however, we have just received another hybrid of the same parents as Incense that is supposed to be virus free called "Inspiration." It will take some time to evaluate it, but hopefully, within a year, we will be selling it.
"As for your plant, what to do with it? I would enjoy it and not worry about your other plants in your collection for, if they are older cultivars, they most certainly have been exposed to viruses. If you want to take precautions, make sure you disinfect your cutting utensils between varieties when pruning.
"It's always beneficial to have virus-free plant material and much of the high volume annual and crop material in contemporary horticulture is clean, but if we're to grow the multitude of unusual and exotic plant found in the world, we'll, at the present time, have to live with the reality of viruses in our plants.
"Incidently, some plants when infected with viruses are killed. Examples of this are the New Guinea Impatiens which, when infected, go into a decline and die. Other like the Passionflower show the symptoms yet have been growing with the viruses for years. The bad news is that we don't get to experience the full vigor of the plants we grow."
This is a picture of the P. Incense leaf with CMV:
Thanks for posting the picture. In all of the years of growing incense I have never seen that happpen to my plants. I wondered what all the fuss was about.
Hi Flicker, all P. Incense vines have the CMV, and it can be transmitted by sucking insects like aphids, but not all P. Incense vines show the virus right away. You may be able to have yours for many more years before the virus finally shows itself. I decided to discard mine as soon as it started showing the virus on the leaves. I just didn't want to risk my other Passifloras getting it, assuming they haven't gotten it already. Additionally, the link I provided above states that it can be transmitted to other susceptible plants as well.