Are all Morning Glories invasive?

I was looking at the contest pictures and some of those morning glories were gorgeous. I was wondering do they spread bad? How do you keep them confined to 1 area?
TIA
Jan

Jan, I haven't had too many problems with them being invasive if I yank out the vines once they start to go to seed. I have an occasional volunteer come up that I weed out, but nothing any worse than some of my other flowers that self seed. Nat

Nat, your Morning Glories were beautiful.

I have an area that gets part sun & part shade in the front of the house & I was thinking that morning glories would be pretty going up a trellis there. I just don't want to see them jumping the sidewalk & getting into my other beds. I only remember seeing MGs in the light blue, but it looks like they come in several colors. I was thinking of putting about 3 of them in different colors in pots.

Nat, your MGs are very pretty. Looks like you have an ideal area for them.

Thanks for the compliments! In case you're wondering, these are Heavenly Blue MG. They were planted in an area that received mid-day to afternoon sun, and the blooms stayed open until mid-day. The blooms on the back of the fence that were in shade most of the day would stay open all day.

So Jan, I think yours should do well if given some shade.

Nathalyn,
I am trying the Heavenly Blues (actually, first MG) next year in a very small yard, the courtyard of my townhome. How many plants are on that fence in the picture. I just need an idea of what I might expect. I know there are other factors as well though too.

Thanks,
James

James, there are only about four morning glory plants on that fence AND the soil was unammended in that spot!

I have been growing several different Mg's for a few years now and have never had a problem with them being invasive.


Black-eyed Susan vine is another matter!!! I hate that stuff and can't get rid of it!!

berrygirl, what variety of MGs do you grow?

Hosta,
I grow Heavenly Blue which I am sure you are familiar with, and Grandpa Otts which is a gorgeous purple. I also have an unknown small blue one.

I also grow a MG relative- Ipomea Quamoclit AKA Cypress Vine/Climber AKA Cardinal Vine/Climber. It is covered with small red flowers.

Is the Cardinal vine/climber invasive? I have tons of Virginia Creeper & don't want to have to fight another invasive plant.

Hosta,
I have only been growing it a year so I don't really know yet. Maybe someone else who has more experience with it can answer.

Just want to add my two cents about the MG. I love them -- they are stunning for mass color. But they have been extremely invasive for me and I still have not been able to get rid of them. If you plant them in an area by themselves, they should be fine. But if you put them anywhere near a bed of soil with other plants, watch out! I planted them on a wrought iron fence at the back of a bed about 12 feet wide and 30 feet long. The runners shot out through that bed like something out of the monster movie of the '50s and of course, I don't see them until they are firmly attached to the ground underneath other plants. Also, I have a couple of crape myrtles that are just on the other side of the wrought iron fence. The MG grew up the crape myrtles and then jumped over to another big tree, through it and then covered my wisteria. I thought they were just beautiful at first, covering the trees like that. Duh!! They kill everything under them!! So, just be very, very careful where you put them. :-)
Terrie

This message was edited Jan 5, 2005 2:16 PM

My front porch faces South & has rock near the foundation for about 18" & I'm thinking of putting them in pots & sitting them on the rocks & putting a netting from there to the awning & letting them grow up there. It is near where I hang the hummingbird feeders & thought they would make additional food for them.
I have mostly shadey garden beds, so wouldn't put them there anyway. Just have a limited area of sunny area. The front of the house is also semi-shade. It gets sun from about 10 - 3.

Sounds like a perfect place for them.

I am thinking about planting morningglories in my hummingbird/butterfly garden. I have been looking around to see what is available. I would like a MG that is not too invasive. I planted a couple of Jasmine plants in this spot but for some reason I just can't grow jasmine. If anyone can give a suggestion or two about varieties of morning glory available, I would appreciate it. thanks,

Chuck

CBERNARD,
I am in a hot moist climate that MG seem to LOVE and I can tell you that I have never had a problem with my Heavenly Blue MG becoming invasive.
It has grown in the same place each yea for several years now. One year it came up in a diff. spot and I thought [gladly] that it had spread but come to find out, I had planted a few seeds there the previous fall. Much later, I found the notes that I had written- LOL!!

Hmm- I have MG's planted in mass on a dead tree in my garden- i'll post a picture- no problems with being invasive either. Of course, my gardens are a tangled mass of plants anyway LOL!

MgTree

CRIMSON,
I bet it is gorgeous when in bloom.
I sowed MG seeds at the base of a couple of trees this fall and can't wait to see how they do next year.

I got some Scarlett O'Hara (dark red) and Star of Yelta (blue-violet) seeds in a trade. It wasn't what I traded for, but she had thrown them in as extras. Like a big dummy I tried to grow some in an almost full seed location. I got a bunch of vine and a couple of sad blooms, but nothing else. It grew back, FROM THE ROOTS, the next spring, but with no blooms this time. So I dug it up and tossed it. So far no runners have come up and it didn't reseed (obviously if it didn't really even bloom).

I was going to toss a few of each seed along an ugly area in my backyard. Nothing is planted there- it's kind of hard clay soil. But it would have a wroght iron fence to grow on. When do y'all scatter your seeds? Do you cover them with dirt or just toss 'em down?

Texas,
MG have to have scarification, so most folks soak them in water or scratch the seed. But if you sow the seed in fall/winter, nature does that for you. That is when I have always sowed mine. I do cover with a small amt of soil. The red clay sounds ideal as they do not bloom well in rich soil. Perhaps that is what happened to yours? No blooms usually means too good soil.

I just bang at my MG tree with a rake and knock the seeds off, LOL. Nature does the rest.
When it's in bloom it is so lovely! I mixed a whole bunch of colours together so it's really cheery and bright.
I've been wanting to get some O`Hara MG's since I saw them on ebay. My durn wish list keeps growing! LOL
I'd be more than happy to share some babies for shipping when they come up this year. No guarantee as to what colors you'll get though, LOL.
It changes every year- cross pollination I guess?
They are planted in pretty rich soil (mushroom composte) and they bloom loads. Didn't know they needed poor soil!
Since they are in near full Florida sun- they only bloom in the mornings. :-)

Oh yeah- I literally have hundreds of babies popping up at the base of that tree in spring! Let's hope that much will come up this year. :-)

Crimson,
I tried for several years to grow MG and they never bloomed. I read somewhere that if they get too much fertilizer or rich soil they wouldn't bloom. So the next year I planted them in our famous red clay and ignored them. I have had fab results ever since.

BUT..... if you are having that much success with yours then don't change a thing. They obviously like what you are doing- LOL!!

LOL- I aint touching them! One thing I can always count on are MG blooms, hehe. They are just darling. :-)

I live in zone 5 (don't know if its "a" or "b") and have grown many morning glories over the years. The only ones I've found that reseeds from year to year is Milky Way and Carmen. Otherwise nothing comes back on its own, and many don't even have time to produce ripe seed before they get hit hard by frost.

Sandy

*weeps for seedsower*
I'd just die if my MG's couldnt reseed themselves. :-(

Hostanquilts, MG's like the east morning sun. I raised them on the farm facing east and boy did they self seed. Didn't mind as the barn wall was behind and in front was lawn.

Maxine

Where I'm thinking of putting them faces South, but I have lots of trees, so it doesn't get full sun all day.

Hosta, every yard is different so... you can buy some cheap MG's and test them out if you're set on getting some. If they bloom then maybe try a neater strain?

Hosta,
My HB MG does not get full nor all day sun and it is the most beautiful of the ones I have.
Part of it grows and blooms under my porch- LOL!!

Hmmm... I thought the problem with mine was that it is in pretty much full shade. And by that I mean 2 very large, old live oaks. My shade lovers do great, but my MG doesn't. And it is on an east facing fence. My neighbors across the street have theirs on the same part of their fence and it blooms like mad. But they don't have 2 big ole trees blocking all the light! And it mine are in really good soil, so that probably does not help.

Crimson- email me with your addy and I will send you some of those O'Hara seeds if you would like. Free beats anything on Ebay! :) I don't have a bunch, but I will share what I do have. If they do okay I figure I will have loads of seeds next year anyway. I got 'em for free so I really don't mind giving you some. Just LMK.

Jamie

I have probably 50 varieties of MG (rotate growing them) and have no problem with them being invasive. I grow mostly the japanese varieties which aren't as hardy or prolific as the non japanese varieties. I grow some in the ground and some in pots with the bamboo poles.
Jan...

Ohhhh Tex!! Thank you!! If they do well for me and you then we should have a ton of them!- or if yours don't I can send you mine- Thank you!! You want some lilies in trade? It's the ones I was offering in the seeds forum.
If not I'll send you a SASE? hehe I fell in love with those this year! Thank you. :D
"dances a jig".

budgielover, what are the names of the Japanese varieties. You can tell I know nothing about MGs, other then my mom grew them when I was a kid. She also grew a vine that reminded me of Chinese lanterns.

Crimson and Hosta,
Did either of you get any MG seeds yet??

If not, LMK as I have some H Blue and Grandpa Ott.

Berry, thank you so much- but I'm done with trading and SASE until I get paied, LOL. " I done gone and went and spent all mah money". LOL
If you still have plenty when I get some moo-lah I'll send ya an email.
Gardening is such an addictive hobby! :-)) Thank you so much- if you see anything I post and you want it- let me know. ;-)

crimson,
You have mail!

berrygirl,
I would love to have some of your MG seed of H Blue and Grandpa Ott. I have hosta seed if you want to trade seeds or I can send an SASE.
LMK,
Jan