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Trumpet vine

16 Comments on Trumpet vine»

1. I need to exterminate my plant called Campsis Radicans. We thought we had dug it out but now it is spreading.

   Eradicating trumpet vine (Campsis raidcans) will require more than just one try. They are persistent and invasive in warm climates. In cooler climates, they die back from the cold winter, so they can be controlled. Keep cutting or mowing the new emerging shoots or treat with an herbicide such as Roundup (follow label directions). Your diligence will pay off.

   Comment by Eddie — 7/23/2007 @ 9:34 am

2. I need to move my trumpet vine, it is long and viny. how and where should I plant it?

   Trumpet vine does grow like a weed once established. To move it, cut the vines to a manageable few feet, dig up a large enough rootball to hold the soil. Plant it in a sunny spot in any type of soil away from homes, sidewalks and flower beds. Best time to tranplant is in the spring/early summer or mid-September. Be sure to water the plant to help it re-establish itself.

   Comment by John — 7/23/2007 @ 9:41 am

3. I have 3 long pods of a Trumpet vine. What do I do with them. I don’t know when to plant or how. Someone said to put them under a rock and forget them till spring. Do I take the seeds out or plant the pod seeds and all. Need help.

   When the pods turn a gray brown color around Sept.-Nov., the capsule will split open and disperse the flat winged seeds. Pick the pods just before that happens. Remove the seeds from the pod, dry and store in a cool dark place (frig) through the winter (or under a rock). Plant in the spring or sow the seeds directly outdoors in the fall and cover with a little soil.

   Comment by Sue — 7/23/2007 @ 12:52 pm

4. My trumpet vine is about seven years old and has never bloomed. We live in the midwest. It is as tall as a privacy fence with great foliage but no blooms not even a bud.

   Trumpet vine can take as long as 5-10 yrs. to bloom. They are slow to mature but now its time to give it a jump start. Don’t pamper this plant-no fertilizer (needs poor soil to bloom) and be sure it has lots of sun (more sun more flowers).Cut back the vines to a few buds in the fall after the leaves have dropped or early spring. Pruning should encourge new growth and since they bloom on new growth, it should help. If your vine is close to a lawn, keep in mind that it can inadvertedly get fertilized with lawn fertlizer high in Nitrogen causing lots of green growth and no flowers..

   Comment by John — 7/23/2007 @ 1:08 pm

5. I’ve had my trumpet vine for three years now. I get foliage but it has never bloomed. Now the leaves seem to be getting very weak and they have tiny white spots on the underside of the leaves. What shoud I do?

   Your trumpet vine may not be mature enough to bloom or some of its growing requirements haven’t been met-sun. Plant hoppers can attack trumpet vine leaving tiny white spots on the leaves. Usually, the damage is not enough to warrant spraying. Because the plant is such a vigorous grower it will outgrow the problem. White scale and mealy bug are two other common insects that infest the plant. Both suck on plant juices causing the leaves to turn yellow.

   Comment by Ruth — 7/23/2007 @ 1:18 pm

6. Should I spray for bugs on my trumpet vine? I have little green bugs all over it.

   First you need to figure out what kind of bug you have. Aphids which can be green can cause curling and distorted leaves. A hard stream mof water will wash them off the plant, do it at least 3 X. If that doesn’t work use insecticidal soap every 3-5 days for 2 weeks.

   Comment by Scott — 7/23/2007 @ 1:35 pm

7. A friend gave me the seeds to a trumpet vine, I would like to know the correct way to plant it. How long does it take to germinate?

   Trumpet vine (Campsis radican) requires cold moist stratification for 60 days at 5-10C (35-40F) in order to get quick and uniform germination. To stratify store seeds in container in the refrigerator. You can also sow untreated seeds in the fall or stratified seeds in the spring. If you live in a cooler climate chances are the seeds were stratified over the winter. Sprinkle seeds on top of a seed starting mix-lightly cover the seeds. Put the container in a plastic bag or cover with plastic to retain humidity. Check for germination in 4-8 wks.
   Trumpet vine can also be propagated from softwood cuttings in June to Sept and roots easily with hormone treatment.

   Comment by Jack — 7/24/2007 @ 5:46 am

8. I, too, have a three year old trumpet vine that has never bloomed. It gets partial sun but I have no other sunnier spot for it. Should I just give up on it? Lots of vine foliage - no blooms. BobbyJean

   Trumpet vine will also bloom in light shade but blooms better in full sun. I wouldn’t give up on it as it may not be mature enough to bloom. It can take 5 years to start blooming.

   Comment by BobbyJean Thompson — 8/4/2007 @ 11:43 am

9. I have a beautiful trumpet plant. I got mildew in early spring so I cut all the leaves and branchs off. I sprouted new beautiful leaves and now is covered in mildew. How do I get rid of mildew??

   Some of the reason why powdery mildew occurs is lack of air circulation and shaded crowded plants. Fungal disease like powdery mildew will thrive in hot, moist areas as well as fluctuating temperatures (warm dry days and cool humid nights) with little air circulation prevalent in the sring and fll. A good cultural defense to start with is to grow disease resistant cultivars, mulching the plant, avoid overheat watering (water early in the day), cleanup any diseased leaves. Sulfur-based sprays, fungicidal soaps and baking soda mix can be used as a preventative. Timing the sprays before the expected infestation occurs. It may be too late to spray this year but start preventative spraying in the spring.

   Comment by Deanna — 9/5/2007 @ 7:16 pm

10. I have a trumpet vine that is about 4 years old, gets lots of sun, and I never fertilize the soil, we have lots of Clay in Vermont. I would love to see buds and blooms any idea as to why I have not and what should I do about it.

    It may be slow to mature or just too happy in the spot its growing. Pruning in the spring will stimulate new growth, which produce flowers. The problem can also be the clay soil-which is higher in nutrients and slow to drain. Trumpet vines like well-drained soil and poor soil.

    Comment by Barbara — 9/21/2007 @ 5:54 pm

11. We also have clay here in NV. I remedied this by adding clean sand and bags of pearlite to the soil. You can also try adding some gravel or clean straw. But the pearlite seems to work best.

    Comment by Susan — 9/22/2007 @ 12:47 pm

12. I live in Northern California, Bay Area. I have 6 trumpet vines, 4 red & 2 lilac, they are planted in sandy soil near a pool (about 4 feet away) on a very strong pergola. They get about 4 hrs of direct sun a day. They are VERY slowly growing. Since I’ve been reading comments about its aggresiveness, should I be concern about the roots damaging my gunite pool? Should I get rid of them? If so, what can I plan instead under this conditions. I just want green foliage to cover my pergola all year round.

    I’m not sure what it will do to your pool. Both types Violet trumpet vine(Clytostoma callistegioides) and red (Campsis radicans) are aggressive growers but you can control them by pruning them back each year. Some alternative vines are Jasmine polyanthum, Star Jasmine (Trachelospernum jasminoides) Evergreen honeysuckle.

    Comment by MARIA — 11/15/2007 @ 1:45 pm

13. This vine is a horror – neighbor’s vines took over my side of fence and strangled three healthy pyracantha if you can imagine! This happened when elderly mother was unable to pay attention to her yard, nor did anyone else. After killing the pyracantha this scourage went for the rose bushes but I finally hacked it back and saved roses. Warning: do not ever plant this “weed” near anything else you want to save – it will wind around it and kill it – we are in So Calif. Lots of heat and drought. Neighbor loves it and wants us to cover a gate with it that attaches to our house. Thanks but no – this garbage invades pipes, walls, etc. As others have said, it’s a nightmare and should never be tolerated.

    Comment by Courtney — 12/5/2007 @ 4:09 pm

14. I am concerned about the negative reviews reguarding the way this plant invades the area around it. I am considering putting my new-comer into a pot because of this. Could you tell me the size of pot and any other important information reguarding this approach to planting a red trumpet, AND, will it bloom as well planted this way?

    Hi Laurie

    Trumpet vine is more aggressive in warmer climates than in cooler zones. Use a very large container such as a half barrel or bury it in the ground, this should keep your trumpet vine at bay. If they start to sucker in areas where you don’t want them, dig up the suckers or use roundup on the small ones. Trumpet vine blooms on its own schedule so it’s hard to say how well or when it will start to bloom. As long as you provide sun to light shade and moisture, it should grow well. It blooms on new growth so don’t be afraid to prune it heavily in the spring. There is a new cultivar Campsis radican “MSU” that produces large flowers and blooms the 1st year after planting contrary to the older cultivars.

    Comment by Laurie — 3/11/2008 @ 9:18 pm

15. I have a trumpet vine that is right next to my vegetable garden. The runners are a night mare! They wind around everything. If I use Round Up on the runners, will it also kill the main plant? the neighbor might not be pleased.

    Hi Aileen
    I don’t think Round-up will kill the main plant unless you use it a number of times and directly on the mother plant. It will kill the runners. You can also dig up or pull out the runners manually, avoiding any chemical drift to your vegetable garden. It will be a long battle since the mother plant will keep sending out new runners. Also collect any seed pods it drops to avoid new plants. Check the manufacturers recommendation for best results.

    Comment by aileen — 4/14/2008 @ 12:00 pm

16. I AM A FIRST TIME GARDENER THIS YEAR - I HAVE SEVERAL TRUMPET VINES THAT ARE GROWING IN MY BACK SUN PORCH UNTIL THE FROST TIME IS OVER - NORTHERN IN. - THEY HAVE BEEN DOING GREAT AND ARE ABOUT 7 INCHES TALL EACH. BUT NOW I HAVE SOME LITTLE HOLES IN SOME OF THE LEAVES - I AM THINKING A NIBBLING BUG - WHAT DO I DO? ALSO, I HAVE A COUPLE LILAC BUSHED STARTING THAT LOOK LIKE THEY HAVE BEEN NIBBLED. I PLAN TO MOVE ALL MY VARIOUS PLANTS FROM THE PORCH TO OUR GARDEN AROUND MAY 1ST - ALSO, WE HAVE A DOG - IF HE NIBBLES THE TRUMPET VINE WILL HE DIE?
    THANKS! AMY.

    Hi Amy,
    There are plant hoppers that like to nibble on trumpet vines. Look underneath the leaves and also check for caterpillars. There are conflicting reports as to its toxicity. Some sites say that all parts are poisonous whereas UC of davis reports it to be a class 4 in which the sap can cause skin irritation .The ASPCA says it’s not toxic. I would suggest that the dog stay away from the plant because if ingested it will most likely irritate his stomach which can lead to vomiting. Better to caution on the safe side.

    Comment by Amy — 4/18/2008 @ 4:29 pm

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