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Ipomoea purpurea is a popular fast growing annual plant. Its large bright flowers will serve as an excellent decoration for a summer cottage and will delight the eye throughout the whole summer – until late autumn.
General description of the species
Ipomoea purple (Ipomoea purpurea) is an ornamental herbaceous plant that belongs to the bindweed family. Its homeland is Central and South America.
Ipomoea Purple is famous for the rapid growth of shoots: depending on the climate, in a short time they reach a height of 4 to 7 m, capturing all the proposed space, and in one night they can wrap around a low support. The longer the warm season lasts, the stronger the morning glory stretches.
The shoots of the plant are branched and long, covered with hairs. On a curly stem with a characteristic short pubescence, there are bright green heart-shaped leaves of a pointed shape with oblong petioles. The length of the petioles is up to 12 cm, the leaves grow from 4 to 18 cm in length and width. They also have a harsh pubescence.
Large funnel-shaped flowers up to 6 cm in diameter are located singly on a small pedicel. The plant got its name for their purple-red hue. The color of the flowers can be the most diverse: pink, crimson, purple, crimson or purple. There are both plain and striped, variegated, terry colors. The internal os is usually white. The flower is delicate, naked, without hairs, consists of 5 fused petals.
The photo of Ipomoea Purple shows a mixture of flowers of various shades.
Ipomoea Purple blooms profusely from June until the first frost. The flowers are highly photosensitive and live only a day. The petals open in the early morning and close when the midday sun becomes too hot for them. In cloudy and cloudy weather, the flowers remain open throughout the day. In extreme heat, on the contrary, they open in the late afternoon.
Ipomoea Purple bears fruit in a three-celled box with seeds inside. Seeds 5-7 mm long, glabrous, black or light brown. The seed box contains from 2 to 4 seeds.
As you can see from the photo, Ipomoea Purple is quite compact and does not take up much space, as it grows vertically.
Ipomoea Purple is unpretentious to the composition of the soil, but loves fertile, loose soils more. Ideal conditions for it will be growing in a tropical and subtropical climate, however, gardeners successfully cultivate morning glory in central Our Country.
Ipomoea grown in the middle lane are annuals, as they are not able to survive severe frosts. However, under ideal conditions Ipomoea purpurea can grow for several years.
The plant prefers well-lit and wind-protected areas. In the shade, the decorativeness of the plant decreases: morning glory flowers fade and become rare. The ideal location is southeast and southwest. As morning glory grows, it needs support, which it will subsequently braid.
Ipomoea Purple grows well and develops in a warm, humid climate, frosts are detrimental to it. It does not tolerate air temperatures below 5 oC. Needs spraying, watering and liquid fertilizer during drought.
Sorts
Gardeners prefer such varieties of Ipomoea Purple as Ultraviolet, Crimson Rambler, Beauty of Moscow, Blue Venice, Maura, Caprice, Milky Way, Venice Carnival.
Other popular varieties:
- Scarlett O’Hara. The variety is distinguished by bright crimson-pink flowers with a white core with a diameter of 7-10 cm, blooms profusely.
- Milky Way. Tall plant (up to 4 m), white flowers with purple-blue stripes.
- Starfish. A low liana (up to 1 m) with flowers 12 cm in size, painted white with five bright pink stripes that repeat the shape of a star.
- Grandee. Height is about 2 m. Flowers are 12 cm in diameter. The inner pharynx is not white, but pale pink. The color itself is dark purple.
- Flying saucer. One of the varieties with the largest, up to 15 cm, white-blue flowers. Height reaches 2,5 m.
- The call. Delicate bluish-lilac flowers 12 cm with a pink center and a white border. One of the lowest vines, grows up to 1 m.
- Giselle. The variety has a long and abundant flowering. The flowers are large (about 15 cm), lilac-blue.
- Kiozaki. The variety is characterized by a spectacular appearance. Height up to 2,5 m. Medium-sized corrugated flowers (up to 5 cm in diameter). Their color can be snow-white, rich purple or purple with a white tint around the edges.
- Night. Bright purple flowers with a white inner throat. Grows up to 3 m in length.
- blue firmament. Pale blue flowers up to 10 cm in diameter. Height 2 m.
- Make a star. The variety reaches 3 m in height. Red-pink flowers with a white patch in the middle.
However, the most famous varieties of Ipomoea Purple remain Paradise Stars and Star Waltz.
star waltz
Seeds produced by the agricultural company “Aelita”. As can be seen from the photo, the variety Ipomoea purple Starry Waltz blooms with large funnel-shaped flowers up to 12 cm in diameter. The length of the stem can reach 3 m.
The photo also shows that Ipomoea Purple Star Waltz is characterized by a mixture of flower colors. On one plant, they can be several shades at once: blue, light blue, snow-white, pink and purple. It is thanks to this that the variety is very popular among summer residents and gardeners.
The flowering period lasts from July to September. For its abundance and duration, it is important to water, weed, loosen and fertilize the plant in a timely manner with the help of mineral dressings.
It is recommended to plant seeds in open ground at the end of May.
heavenly stars
The variety Ipomoea Purple Paradise Stars is also distinguished by a mixture of colors. On one vine, beige, pink, purple, bright blue and pale blue flowers appear at the same time.
Thanks to its bright, large foliage and long, abundant flowering, the flower of Ipomoea Purple Paradise stars will serve as a wonderful decoration for a summer cottage: the liana can cover fences and walls with a lush green carpet.
Planting seeds of Ipomoea Purple Paradise stars in open ground begins in spring, in April, when the average daily temperature rises above 10 oC.
Breeding methods
Most often, Ipomoea Purple is propagated by seeds. You can buy them at a garden store or make your own.
Harvesting seeds of Ipomoea Purple begins in the fall. It is important to wait for the full maturation of the boxes, which occurs a month after the flowers wither. The boxes are dried, waiting for cracking, the seeds are separated, wrapped in paper bags and stored in a dark, dry, well-ventilated place until spring.
The plant is also propagated by cuttings. To do this, on branches 15–20 cm long, having 2 internodes, an incision is made at an angle of 45 degrees. The incision should be about 2 cm below the knot. The lower leaves must be removed, and then put the stalk in a container with clean, settled water.
Ipomoea Purple cuttings are kept at room temperature until the first roots appear. After they need to be transplanted into the ground. The rooting process takes 1 – 2 weeks. Kornevin fertilizer will not be superfluous.
Rules of landing and care
In the southern regions with a warm climate, where spring frosts are replaced by heat already in April, Ipomoea Purple seeds are immediately planted in open ground.
Since about three months pass from the moment Ipomoea is planted to the opening of the first flowers, gardeners in Siberia and central Our Country prefer to grow seedlings. Landing is carried out from the beginning of March to April. In such a climate, sowing seeds in open ground may be too late, and morning glory will not have time to bloom, or the first flowers will appear closer to the end of the season.
The soil for Ipomoea Purple must be loose and nutritious, contain mineral and organic substances. The following soil composition is best suited for young seedlings:
- 2 parts of sheet land;
- 1 part coconut fiber;
- 1 part peat;
- 1 part vermiculite
Planting and caring for seedlings of Ipomoea Purple: photo, step by step instructions.
- In the spring, before planting, seed preparation begins. They are soaked for 24 hours in water at room temperature.
- After swelling, morning glory seeds are sown in several pieces in small pots to a depth of about 2 cm. The soil must first be moistened.
- In order for the sprouts to sprout as early as possible, the pots are covered with a film on top and the temperature in the room is maintained at about 18 oC. Every day you need to remove the film and ventilate the seedlings.
- The first ipomoea sprouts should appear in 2 weeks. After the appearance of the fourth leaf, the seedlings are dived and seated one by one.
- When the sprouts reach a height of 15 cm, it is necessary to build a small support for them.
- Seedlings are transplanted into open ground, when during the week the air temperature at night does not fall below 5 oC. The distance between sprouts should be at least 25 cm.
When planting seeds in open ground, scarification is first performed. To do this, the outer shell is damaged and the seeds are left in warm water for a day.
Landing is carried out at daytime air temperatures above 16 oC, the ground must be well warmed up. Seeds are planted in several pieces in holes 2-3 cm deep at a distance of 25 cm from each other and slightly moisten the soil.
When choosing a place for planting, remember that the plant loves places well lit by the sun, protected from the wind. Liana prefers slightly acidic, light soil. The site can be prepared in advance by adding the following mixture to the ground:
- 4 parts of peat;
- 2 parts sand;
- 1 part humus.
Aftercare
Care after planting in open ground includes top dressing and regular watering. During the period of growth and formation of flowers, Ipomoea Purple is actively watered, without waiting for the earth to dry in the root zone. With the approach of autumn, watering is reduced.
Ipomoea Purple is fed every 2 to 3 weeks, fertilizers based on potassium and phosphorus are preferred. The soil is recommended to periodically loosen and mulch.
With the onset of frost, Ipomoea Purple is completely removed from the site. The plant is sometimes brought into a warm room for the winter, then it can be used for cuttings in the spring.
Fighting diseases and pests
Ipomoea Purple may suffer from the following diseases.
- Root or stem rot. Dark brown foci form on plant sites. The cause of the disease is the fungus Fusarium. Not amenable to treatment, the plant must be dug up and burned.
- soft rot. A characteristic feature is the softened parts of the stem. In this case, morning glory is also subject to removal and burning.
- Black rotcaused by fungus. The stem is covered with dark spots, from which a pink liquid exudes. Fungicide treatment will help save the plant.
- white rust. It is characterized by the appearance of small rounded spots with a white coating of the fungus. The affected parts of the plant are removed. Ipomoea is treated with Fitosporin solution.
- Antraknoz. Occurs with excessive watering, growing brown spots appear on the leaves. The affected foliage is removed, the soil and the plant are treated with a fungicide.
Application in the design of the site
Landscape designers often use Ipomoea for vertical gardening, the plant serves as a wonderful decoration for arbors, arches, fences, fences and walls. With it, you can hide all the shortcomings of suburban buildings.
Ipomoea Purple looks good in combination with climbing plants: girlish grapes, thunbergia, clematis and campsis. When planted next to fruit trees, morning glory branches will braid the trunk with an interesting pattern, making it a flowering work of art.
Conclusion
Ipomoea purpurea is an ornamental plant that many gardeners and landscape designers love for its unpretentious care and bright, attractive appearance. Liana is able to transform and make unique even the most unremarkable corner in the garden.
