New MG with an old MG?

I have about 6 year old MG's growing over a structure. They come back every year and grow fast and well. If I try to mix in another color MG in with the old ones think it will work or just get choked out?

HI CoreHHI - Welcome to the MG forum...relative to your question,if you could manage to post a picture of what your supporting structure looks like,particularly when it is covered with the MG species that you currently have growing on it...a visual of the structure would enable a better recommendation to be suggested...

I'm wondering what species you have growing>that is>is the MG an annual that is self re-seeding(?) or do you have a prerennial species growing like Ipomoea indica(?)...a photo of the flowers and/or plant parts would make for a quicker ID...

TTY,...

Ron

It doesn't seed and it's actually blue most of the time. It's feeling purple in this photo.

That's another question, do MG's vary a lot from day to day color wise? The usual color is blue with white centers but it goes purple quite a bit.

CoreHHI - The MG you have is Ipomoea indica which is commonly self-infertile,but will produce seeds if fertilized by another compatible Ipomoea indica plant...

The Ipomoea indica flowerrs often turn more of a pinkish hue as the individual flowers age and when there is alot of temperatures fluctuations...although it may be that you have a type that has a stronger 'tendency' towards the pink spectrum...

Ipomoea indica(as the species epithet would strongly suggest)was once thought to have originated in Asia,but the most recent genetic analysis shows that Ipomoea indica undoubtedly originated in the Caribbean and is now(to the chagrin of many) considered(by those botanists in the know)to be a bonafide native(!)of the US Gulf Coast States...it has naturalized around the globe...


I am aware of different colored blooms of Ipomoea indica from different parts of the world that display natural color and petal variations,but I am not aware of any true hybrids of Ipomoea indica...the Ipomoea indica named variations include :
Ipomoea indica alba
'Betty Mars'
'Edith Piaf'
'Morning Face'
'Tokiko Kato'
'Zarah Leander'

and a few others...

Looks like the area that the I.indica is in is pretty full...I wouldn't suggest growing another species in the same exact spot,but you could add additional MG's to the pergola by planting in strategically placed hanging planters which would allow the MG's to climb upwards onto the pergola and fill in the bare areas...

Hanging planters need a watchful eye so that they don't dry out too much and completely dehydate the plants...

TTY,...

Ron

Ron, how the Blue Dawn flower (I. indica) beat Captain Cook (see map of his 1768 - 1771 first Pacific discovery voyage (1768 - 1771): http://www.nhm.ac.uk/jdsml/nature-online/endeavour-botanical/ ) to a western Pacific tropical island - all the way from the Carribean - is one of my favorite mysteries. I won't speculate here, but the botanic illustration of I. indica from that voyage on the foregoing link looks so much paler than the images on this forum. Do you know if it's because the Cook voyage illustration faded or if this flower has been bred for a darker color since its encounter with Captain Cook?

And then, there's also the traveling of sweet potatoes from South America far into the west Pacific who-knows how many thousands of years ago..

I would welcome anyone else's facts, theories or speculation about the diffusion of morning glory species around the globe so long ago. The only internet document I know of pertaining to Captain Cook is more of a fictional play on his reputed character/personality: Peter Pan by J. M. Barrie at: http://www.gutenberg.org/ .

Core, that's a beauty! I love Ron's idea of hanging baskets full of other MGs to complement your vine.