Lapageria, Chilean Bellflower, Copihue 'Beatrix Anderson'

The Lapageria rosea - common name 'Red Chile Bells' - is an evergreen climber that spreads by sending out suckers from the base. The show...Read Morey, pendulous, bell-shaped, deep pink flowers up to 3 in long, open over a long period during Summer and Autumn.
They are native to Chile and Argentina.

E.B. Anderson, now deceased, was once chairman of the Alpine Garden Society in England. His wife was honored with having this lapageria ...Read Morenamed after her, Beatrix Anderson. The flowers are a nice red and are 3.5 inches long and 2.3 inches wide. There is a lot of white dotting inside the blooms. According to University of California Botanical Garden, Berkeley, this cultivar flowers a lot.

This woody climber originated in the rain forests of Chile (where it is their national flower) where it prefers its roots in shade and then it climbs up into the sunlight to flower in summer all the way thru to winter. It can grow up to 15 feet under cultivation and even higher in the wild. The flowers which are thick and waxy, hang down like 3 to 4 inch bells. They have 6 petals, 3 outer and 3 inner that form the bell shape. They prefer a slightly acid soil with regular watering. The temperate weather of the California coastal areas and Bay Area of California allow this subtropical vine to flourish.

I have had no problem growing several in the California Bay Area outside even when we have had uncharacteristically cold weather in the winter of 2006 which went down to 24 degrees periodically over a 2 week period.