Trumpet vine
I have 2 trumpet vines, planted last year. This year there were only a few flowers on one and none on the other. Am I supposed to cut them back in the fall or spring?
Trumpet vine, Campsis radicans is a fast growing vine and sometimes considered invasive in warmer climates. Once established, it spreads by underground runners and seeds and can be difficult to control.
For best bloom plant in full/part sun, well drained soil, low moisture and no fertilizer. If it doesn’t bloom well, chances are that you are pampering it too much.
Prune the vine in early spring to shorten and remove dead wood. To control aggressive growth cut it back to the ground and it should resprout. The orange tubular flowers are produced on current seasons growth and attract hummingbirds and bees.
All parts of this plant are poisonous and care should be taken when handling the plant as some can get a skin reaction to the foliage.
Trumpet vine is hardy in USDA zones 4-9.
Spray the plant with diluted vinegar. A half-and-half solution of vinegar and water sprayed over the foliage will eventually kill trumpet vine.
There is a skin irritant in trumpet vine that affects some people. This characteristic lends trumpet vine one of its common names—cow itch vine.
have 2 trumpet plants that I planted this spring.
Should I trim them down about 7 inches from the roots in the fall.
I’m in Pittsburgh.
I have a 4yr olf trumpet. The last two years they have become sick, leaves have turned spotty brown and fallen off. Several of the plants died. Last year I though perhaps I hit it with two much insecticide and plant disease killer and perhaps that’s what killed it. This winter I cut it way back and Amy having them same problem. I’ve only hit it twice with a insecticide plant disease mix and once with iron thinking maybe that’s what it was. Today after two weeks of treatment leaves have fallen all over the place and it looks like it’s heading down the same road…..HELP!!!
Interested in the 5 trumpet vines where are you located?
I am in St Joseph Michigan
Could u send me pictures of the 5 vines??
I just got my trumpet vines seeds in the mail
And I can’t wait to plant them in the fall, I would like to know if anyone has the yellow trumpet vine seeds they are harder to find around here . So far I haven’t noticed that we have an invasive problem in RI, they aren’t taking over . It depends where in the country you live in. If you have these seeds and you want to trade for some ROS I have a lovely white chiffon and a light pink carnation w/redish center very pretty !
I have 5 trumpet vines planted at the posts of a very large pergola in my yard, After 3 years, they have bloomed and are beautiful. However, there are dozens and dozens of black flies all over the flowers and trying to eat out under the pergola is next to impossible. Can I spray them with something to get rid of the flies?
Well, any of the commercially available yard insecticides that promise a lasting killing and /or repelling effect when sprayed on vegetation on flies, mosquitos etc, are toxic to bees and hummingbirds too. There are sprays on the market now that are made of plant-derived oils (look for words like “naturel” on the label) that have no residual toxic effect. These work on contact with the insect only, so you need to spray directly onto the pesky flies, and do so repeatedly as more show up. But if the plant is attracting the flies, where are they coming from?
Kathy: Can you be more specific about the “black flies?” Are they gnats or common house flies or something all together? I’m very, very tuned into the life cycle of my massive trumpet vine and the common house fly ONLY comes in late Summer and colonizes the blooms and pods. There are 1,000’s of them on the plant, replacing the ants that start out in Spring by eating the sugar off the flower buds, then the honeybees, wasps, hummingbirds that pollinate/drink from the flowers earlier in the year. There are NO food sources or trash cans near my vine so the only thing bringing in the flies is the vine. Our patio is 10 feet from the vine and we eat outside every night, but the flies completely leave us alone….they’re too busy with the trumpet vine. LOL
rae is correct: the ecosystem around a trumpet vine is SO intense, that spraying to kill the “flies” will kill so many other lovely birds/bees/butterflies. Perhaps one of those electronic bug *zappers* would work for you?
We planted two lavender trumpt vines to cover our fence a year ago. They are growing, even sending out runners, but no blooms. They get a lot of water since the neighboring plants need it. We gave them worm castings…nothing. What do we need to do to get them to bloom?
Don’t baby the vines as mentioned in your first reply. Let them grow as natural as possible and do not fertilize with a commercial fertilizer. It will kill the vine or at least stop it from blooming. Do the neighbors fertilize. Water is fine, but keep in mind that the vines like to be ignored. And it does take several years for them to start blooming. This year my vine had so many blooms, then a short drought didn’t help, but there are still a few blooms here and there. Good luck.
My neighbor trumpet vine comes up all over my yard and all the neighbors yards.
It is host to wasps. I sprayed it with roundup as best I could .. the thing is about 16 or more feet high…on a wooden fence. … and now I spray with vinegar…and put vinegar in the ground along the fence ….and spray roundup on the runners that come up in the yard. Now I’m cutting the tons of vine on my side of the fence…..and spraying vinegar on the flowers that are too tall to reach.
The neighbor that owns the trumpet vine called me saying I cannot spray the trumpet vine on my side of the fence……I, of course, told her I would continue spaying and cutting….and now and considering putting an aluminum barriers in the ground to stop the runners. Any advice?
removing trumpet vine
Unfortunately all your spraying will not do much good. Roundup will not kill the roots that are spreading into your yard, and it seems that the more you attack this aggressive vine, the farther it spreads looking for a comfy home. The roots have to be dug out, and any little bit left will survive and sprout.
Just keep pruning on your side and mowing down the sprouts, and trying to get your neighbor to see that her vine is a nuisance. You won’t be able to kill it.
Barriers might work, but they will have to go quite deep — the roots have been known to dive down under patios and pools, and I have found them over 18 inches down under normal circumstances.
I just found another sprout from a trumpet vine that I cut down, dug out the roots, and soaked the ground around the roots with poison ivy killer — THREE YEARS ago. I’ve been getting sprouts each summer since — and as usual, this sprout was 4-5 feet away from the original plant. I’ve had it come up 20 feet away.
You need to do some research on how horrible Roundup is for the environment. It is a poison to plants and humans. Just keep mowing the vine and using the vinegar.
Unfortunately it does spread, but for those of us who love the vine, we just simply mow over it. Organic gardening is working for me! Another thought is that years ago I killed my second vine with commercial fertilizer. Perhaps that will work for you, but of course I don’t use anything that isn’t organic.
PS: The sprouts come from the ‘mother’ plant so you will never get rid of the sprouts as long as the original plant thrives. Sorry.
I have a trumpet vine next to my vegetable garden. This year the garden isn’t doing as well as it has in the past. Is the trumpet sucking out all the water from the garden?
Bill, Possibly you have used a commercial fertilizer on the trumpet vine. They pretty much want to be left alone, but will accept a little composted cow manure. But even that is not needed . I am looking out at my trumpet vine and it is green and looking good.
Good luck,
Jan
Whole stems on my trumpet plant are falling out where the wood meets the stem. About 30 branches fell out yesterday. I noticed that a different plant in my garden about 20 feet away the same thing is happening. Any ideas on what is causing this and how it can be cured?
You probably over fertilized the plant area with commercial fertilizer? Ignore the plant and it will thrive, watering during droughts. Sorry this is so late in helping you.
My 14 foot trumpet vine was a glorious sight this year with many many blooms and is still just finishing up with a few. The robin did come back to nest, too. If you read my other long post on 55 year old trumpet vine you will understand.
Frost damage
I live in Wisconsin. Trumpet vine started budding leaves, then got hit by frost, killing the leaves. Will my vine still grow this year?
Don’t use commercial fertilizer as it will kill the plant. TVs thrive on neglect and if you must fertilize use composted cow manure sparingly.
Scale on trumpet vine
I live in CA and have 3 lavender trumpet vines and one red trumpet vine. They bloom every year and are gorgeous. However, they are now being destroyed by scale insects. Does anyone have a way to rid these destructive bugs? Thanks.
Invasive trumpet vine controlHi, again wanted to comment on control (referring to JoeBob’s post a month ago). The fact that they die back in winter doesn’t really help to control their spread–only limits the size of the top growth, perhaps, but the larger the root gets the larger the top growth grows each season too. The roots still spread underground, and get bigger and bigger–I’ve dug out roots as big as my arm, and am still having to dig out spreading, sprouting roots 3 years after cutting down the vine and the initial treatment with poison ivy killer. I am talking about spreading, sprouting roots that are surviving after multiple apps of herbicide and NO top growth permitted for 3 years!
The only thing that works for me is to dig down and remove the root, as much as possible, then soak the surrounding soil with the herbicide. Any little bit left (including tiny root branches) will grow and eventually sprout if not treated. In areas where the root isn’t accessible (like where it ran under the path) cutting into or scraping the root and applying the herbicide to the cut will kill that part of the root–but it seems that the herbicide will not be taken up any farther through the root and will not kill the whole root system. I hate having to use all this herbicide but in my situation can’t allow this plant to consume the whole yard–and it would!
I have never seen a pod on the trumpet vine here…so I won’t be able to send any seeds. I should have realized that a trumpet vine growing in California would not be the same as ones grown in other climates. Thank you all for your comments.
Hi Chris: ah, the joys of “common names”. LOL And as an avid gardener, yourself, you can easily understand why latin nomenclature must come into play with such common names as “trumpet”. No harm, no foul; it was still interesting reading about YOUR version of a trumpet vine. Peace.
Just my thoughts…..
For several years I participated in a seed exchange on the Garden Web forums. I received many, many seeds from all over the country. When I sent seeds out, I would tell the postmaster exactly what was in the package (they ask) and I never had a problem sending them. Garden Web still to this day has the seed exchanges so I’m not sure there would be a problem getting the seeds from California. So, Chris I’d still like to try the seeds. If I am successful growing them and I’m happy with how they will grow in one summer season, and they produce seeds then I would have no problem re-seeding every season.
NanC
Another good thing about the Trumpet Vine is that it wasn’t on the Gypsy Moth’s list of delectable greens. ( “
Thanks for that info. Plus, we really need to know what the US Postal systems laws are. For example, our area in mid Michigan a few years ago had the gypsy mother invasion and I sure wouldn’t want to spread that to other areas even though it now seems eradicated. Those little eggs can hide in the least suspected places.
Happy Trumpeting
Jan
You’re welcome, Jan. As a landscape architect, I always run into client’s who want what they can’t grow.LOL Arizona wants lilacs and tulips, Illinois wants palms and Bougainvillea. It never fails. 🙂
Gardeners!!!!!! The Lavender “Trumpet Vine” talked about by Chris is NOT…I repeat, NOT THE TRUMPET VINE THAT THIS THREAD IS DEDICATED TO!!!!
This thread is talking about Campsis radicans, a WINTER-HARDY woody vine.
Chris is talking about Clytostoma callistegioides, which is zoned 8-11!!!! It is a TROPICAL VINE and can NOT withstand winters in Michigan or anywhere else that freezes!
So, getting seeds for something that you can’t grow will only lead to a disappointed gardener.
I, too, would be willing to pay for some Lavendar seed pods, but first you have to check the US Postal regulations. They might frown on mailing seeds to another state. Also what zone are they hardy in?
Jan from Michigan
Chris
Your Lavendar TV sounds beautiful. Does it produce seed pods? If so, would you be willing to send me some seeds? I will pay postage.
NanC
I am not sure what you should do in California and it would be a shame to ruin the vine.
However, I do believe trumpet vines are virtually indestructible. Why don’t you try to trim some of the dead branches being careful not to cut one that feed the green.
In Michigan, Fall is the best time to prune, but that is because we experience winter with freezing temps. Keep in mind that it is on the new growth that the blossoms appear the following year. If you prune, do leave some new growth. Maybe others can answer your question better than I did.
Your vine sounds beautiful. We have the red/orange one and the hummingbirds love it.
Jan
I have a 9 year old Summer Snowfall Trumpet Vine at my fence. Has been great all these years until now. It only had a few flowers this year, and now is looking sickly. So I trimmed it down to about 6 feet. This is when I found the woody, twisty bark at the center was surrounded with spider webs and leaf debris. I then sprayed it with Malathion. What has happened? Will it survive and recover? Should I clean out the webs and debris? Should I cut it down further? Help????
I live in California. We have a 20 year old lavender trumpet vine growing on a wall. It blooms profusely each year. We have never pruned it. It stays green all year and blooms all spring. But under the beautiful greenery are many branches with no leaves as this part never sees sunlight. This is causing the trumpet vine to become very thick (it is about 2 feet thick) and it is beginning to block a walkway. Do I lift the greenery andI trim only the dead-looking wood underneath? Or do I prune off all the greenery and also some of the dead looking wood? What time of year would be best to trim it? I hesitate to do anything as it is right outside my kitchen window looking beautiful.
Planting seeds
Hi,
I am fairly new to the gardening scene. I love the trumpet flowers and have been given seed pods from the yellow and white plants. I don’t know what to do with them and can only find info on what to do with pods that are brown. What do i need to do with them? Do i need to dry them out or can i just plant them?
Thanks
Thanks for the replay, Jan. I have lots of seed pods that are just turning so I’ll keep my eye on them and then try both ways to plant. Will be interesting to see what happens. Yeah, I have a lot of fall flower/garden clean up to do. It usually takes me a good week to get it done and then I’m wiped out! LOL. This summer was way too hot for me so I am downsizing as the older I get, the harder it is for me to work in the gardens. I so enjoyed our little Hummers this year and it’s always sad to see them leave.
Have a good winter!
NanC
Hi NanC, Happy painting! According to my neighbor, dear deceased Mable, you plant the whole mature brown/gray pod with the seeds enclosed. She thought it would stand a better chance of sprouting. I know both of our pods did sprout the next year. I don’t have any experience with growing the TV from single seeds, but others have and if you read all of the contributions you might find the process. I have tried to transplant some of the sprouts from the big vine without much success. But again others have by encouraging roots in water.
It is getting time for the flowers to go to sleep. It always makes me sad to see the beauty leave, but I also can anticipate next spring/summer/fall.
Michigan Jan
Jan…I too enjoyed reading your 55 year old story. (And I am from Michigan too).
Here’s my TV story…
Six years ago I bought a TV from Anderson’s in Toledo, Ohio. It was a Campsis radicans Flamenco Red. I’d never seen red ones before. The following season it looked healthy and I was certain it would survive. But we decided to move and I had a decision to make. Leave it or bring it with me, fingers crossed that it would survive. I did the latter. I so hoped it would survive the transplant and it did!!!! Four years later (this year) I finally had blooms. It was just beautiful. We took many pictures for me to save since I am an artist and I plan to paint at least one of the pics. Then last month we noticed the pods. I was pretty sure it was seed pods since so many bushes and plants have them. But I didn’t know when to harvest them or how and when to plant the seeds and just found this forum. So I have a question for you. You said to plant the whole pod. Do you mean just put the whole pod in the ground without removing the seeds?
NanC
Hi Cahow, Thank you for your kind remarks. I forgot to mention that you should be sure to use the brown pods that have matured. Green very seldom sprout. Again for everyone, neglect is the best you can do for a trumpet vine. We can always learn something new, too.
I didn’t realize that the blooms come on the new vine. That makes sense because they bloom at the top of the vine and never or very seldom on the way up to the top. I’m looking out at the vine now and it is past blooming, but looking very robust this year. Perhaps the accidental pruning made it better?
Happy Trumpeting!
Jan
Jan: your post, almost a short story, was one of the most CHARMING gardening stories I’ve ever read. You really brightened up a dreary Sunday for me. Thank you for sharing your history, love and knowledge about the Trumpet Vine with us. I’m going to try out your suggestion about planting the entire pod; I’ve never heard that before.
Keep on living, loving and writing about your garden!
Love my trumpet vines…I have three, but they are taking over. I am finding shoots all through my yard, and flower beds. I pull them up they keep coming back, and they keep multiplying. Yesterday, I found a shoot on the inside wall of my house. Apparently, it creeped up from the outside and is now splitting my trim. I need to kill this thing, and fast. I was thinking about cutting all three down, and then going around with weed killer to kill the shoots yet one more time. (When I used the weed killer, it only killed the shoot temporarily). Help!
It’s a sad day when a beautiful plant must be killed but I completely understand the structural damage portion of your post.
As the 1st reply stated, this won’t be a One Time thing. If you are sure you want it D.E.A.D., then cut it down NOW, while the green foliage is still on. This will severely damage the root system as it has not yet had time to store up the energy reserves it needs to survive Winter. If you wait until it’s dormant to cut it down, you’re simply creating the energy needed for it to sprout up EVERYWHERE!!!! It will probably take a couple of years for you to kill off all the shoots. Manual labor is going to remove them better than a spray. The woody stems can regenerate like crazy, even when defoliated.
Secret to bloom
What IS the secret to getting this to bloom!!!??? Have had it atleast seven years, enough sun, up against out gazebo. Vine is beautiful – but not one flower in all these years!! Any tips??
FIFTY FIVE YEARS OF GROWING TRUMPET VINES
I have a trumpet vine from a seed pod that is 55 years old. I received the seed pod from my childhood neighbor when I first married. Mabel said to plant the whole pod. I planted one pod near our shed and the other near the house where the soil was poor in fact mostly sandy. They both sprouted the next year and continued to grow, but didn’t bloom for several years. One year after they were blooming, I fertilized the one by the shed with rapid grow and it died. The one by the house grew and grew and grew up into out attic even. My husband kept pruning it back, but once established it is very aggressive. Note: if you must fertilize, I would try a light dab of composted cow manure, which my maidenhair and Christmas fern seem to thrive on. All three of these plants die with commercial fertilizer. However, I am not recommending you fertilize the vine.
From that plant I took seed pods and planted them beneath a pine tree that was dying. It took over the pine tree, so we cut off the top leaving it about 10 feet tall. For years the vine grew around the dead stump and was very attractive. As noted, Hummingbirds love it and for that reason I would never spray it. Previous entries mentioned that ants are needed to help open the buds. This is probably true because we have a lot of ants on the vine and peonies surrounding it. So if you spray to kill the ants you are probably stopping the vine from blooming and you might be harming the hummingbirds, too. The vine is best left wild as much as possible.
Last year, my son cut down the rotten stump and built me a beautiful vine frame that is about 14 to 15 feet high with diagonal two-by-fours at the top and a smaller middle tier. The tiers have hooks for hanging baskets. Part of the vine died, but the other is now thriving and just stopped blooming. As others have noted, there are vines sprouting up all over the lawn. The only sad thing was that a robin returned this past spring and looked for the old nesting sight on top of the stump, but decided against another nest. Perhaps next year with newly established vines at the top, she will return to build a nest there.
Six years ago we had to cut down the one on the house due to remodeling to put on a covered porch. The vine kept trying to grow up through the porch flooring and has now sprouted in the front area of the house. I don’t want it on the house, but I’m thinking a small post or fence/arbor might work.
I don’t know about hybrid vines bought from a nursery, but the wild are very aggressive and I would not recommend that you plant them on or near a house. Neglect them and they flourish! I love looking at the vine from my computer window where I see the hummingbirds flitting about. I have gotten more enjoyment from that one than I ever did from the 55 years on the house.
I understand that the vine is poisonous for animals and should not be planted where cattle can eat it. They will get very sick from the plant. Our dogs and cats have never tried to eat the vine. I’ve never had deer eat them. I think that is because the leaves are a bit scratchy and can cause a rash on your skin if you are sensitive. I find the leaves scratchy, but I’ve never had a rash.
As an added note, if you love nature as I do, the best plants for attracting butterflies, bees, and hummingbirds are natural ones. Wild Goldenrod, asters and those flowering plants native to my Michigan, are the best. The Trumpet Vine is a transplant that has been naturalized to most states. It is a King of a Vine. Enjoy!
I lost a 3 yr old Trumpet 3 yrs ago in a extra long cold Minnesota winter and bought another that
began blooming the first year I planted it. I grows on our
clothesline pole and is huge like a giant umbrella with tons of amazing drooping arms. All my neighbors want one so I pull up runners and root them in a small container of water and after a couple weeks they are ready. My mom always had
one of these and I am so proud of ours.
Not blooming
I bought two trumpet vines and although healthy , neither has bloomed. I heard from someone that this plant needs to be cut way back in the fall in order to bloom the following year. I live in Toronto if that makes a difference in care. Thanks for the help.
Start from seed
an i plant the seeds, and when
Will deer eat the trumpet vine? OK how delicious does the deer find the trumpet vine?
Hey all!
I wanted to share my TV experience with you. I purchased two very small plants from a mail order nursery three years ago. I planted them on a lovely arbor at the top of our stairs going down to the river. 1st year they were spindly. I actually planted morning glories along side so that I would have something on the arbor. 2nd year, one side just reached the top of the arbor with one spindly main stem and some off shoots, the other side actually made it half way over the top. No flowers, though. This year it is VERY full and each side has cascaded over the top and down the opposite side. It seems like each morning I need to either tie or tuck it’s new growth. The first week of August (in Northern NY) we noticed what looked like berries on the ends of a couple of the top branches. There were alot of blank ants crawling over them…like on peonie buds. As a few days went by, these berry things began to elongate and I realized that they were, infact, the flower buds. I had given up hope and even threatened to trash the darn vine (if it didn’t flower this year). Being so late in the season and with our summer waning, I don’t expect a fabulous display this year…but at least we have some flowers. AND, a very pleasant surprise…I thought that I had purchased two yellow vines, but, alas, there are some deep orange and some yellow flowers. It looks pretty cool! I will let it do it’s thing through Fall & Winter and then I will prune in Spring. I’m hoping that if I leave a couple of main stems that the flowers next year may come sooner and not be clustered just at the top.
I inherited a spectacular trumpet with the house I moved into last year. It is doing very well this year despite the late spring and rain this year – Northern Illinois zone 5. It is planted on southwest corner of house, so is shaded in the morning, and then gets intense afternoon sun. http://wellwateredgardenjournal.blogspot.com/2011/08/trumpet-vine.html
I just had to comment on your GREAT screen name (humble gardener) and also your blog! LOVE the name and LOVE the photos on your blog! I’m happy to hear of another person groovin’ on their Trumpet Vine. 🙂
Ants on trumpet vine
I have a vine on a small arbor in front of an entrance to a sun room. It is beautiful but… This year there are so many ants on it that I can’t walk into the sun room without having a couple fall on me. I am not looking to get rid of all the ants but in controlling them so there are less. Is this possible?
this may sound silly but im no gardener but i would like to grow the yellow ones i have a great spread of the orange ones can i use the pods off of a flowering plant of a yellow one what do i need to do w the seed pod please help thanks
Dig up runners
My trumpet vine did not look at all sinister when I brought it home from a garden lecture – in a coffee cup!! -20+ years ago. Every summer it blooms beautifully, and vibrates with hummingbird action. HOWEVER it is a thug!!!…growing into beds 15+ feet away -through landscape fabric etc. I’ve been trying to keep it under control by pulling out the renegades. Our lawn mower is down for the count and throughout the yard I have 10″ vines popping up all over.Can I dig up these upstarts to give friends who “Love” my vine?…Will they flower? In advance thanks for your help!!!
My wife wants a vine to grow against our house and accross/within our deck railing. Do you think a trumpet vine would be good for this? Are their better flowering vines for this application?
Thanks,
Matt
I’ve 2 beautiful 7 year old TVs next to each other. They’ve bloomed profusely 2 years ago and now for the last 2 years the lush plants go to buds, and then the buds die and fall off with no flowers. I don’t fertilize , their roots are strong, i see no bugs… does anyone know why?
Hola Patrick. I too hesitate to go off topic knowing how touchy some administrators can be, so first I’ll let everyone know that of my 25 Trumpet Vine seeds, 12 are in the refrigerator until Sept. The other 13 I planted in seed trays July 16 and as of today 4 seedlings have sprouted. Hoping for more but I’m totally stoked that I have already had success. We live on 20 acres here, plus a 2000 sq. ft. greenhouse so there’s plenty of room for the Trumpet Vine. As for the Costa Rican Butterfly Vine, I had to Google it to see what it was… it’s beautiful and I want one but in my 18 years living here I have never seen one! Gonna photo copy picture and show to the local vivero (plant nursery) to see if they recognize it. Good luck with your cutting, if it roots maybe someday you’ll have seeds and send me some! Pete
Hey all – I’m having issues with my trumpet vines. I live in Utah (hardiness zone 5b) I planted three red and two yellow vines in boxes (open on bottom) next to my deck in full morning sun and later afternoon shade. They went in the ground last July and had a smidge of growth. Over the winter I think I lost one of them on the end (my guess is poor insulation and have since put dirt up against the boxes on the sides to help against the cold). At the beginning of the season it popped out a half dozen new leaves but then just stopped and looks pathetic. Now the others have grown up to about 1.5 feet or so, the leaves have turned dark green, and they seem to have stopped growing. I had heard that these plants tend to grow like crazy so I’m worried I’m doing something wrong. I haven’t fertilized since last year and I soak them pretty good with a hose 4-5 times a week (I’m unsure how much to water–I just let a hose run with a moderate flow for 30 seconds or so per plant). What do you think? Thanks guys!
Okey-doke. I’ll try watering them less – thanks!
Hi Pete…not to get off topic, but just wanted to say that on my last (3rd) visit to Costa Rica, I took the bus to Cartago and thoroughly enjoyed walking around taking pics. I really love Costa Rica and look forward to more visits.
Yesterday, I found a Costa Rican Butterfly vine at a local nursery – first time I’ve ever seen one. It was in a large pot and a bit pricey, but I found a small broken side branch and brought it home to see if I can root it.
Patrick…Seattle, WA
Don’t worry Carol – and have patience. I thought mine would never bloom – but around 5 years went by and then BLOOM! Just wonderful! 😀
Not blooming
I have had a trumpet vine for two years now and it hasn’t bloomed. It is growing beautifully, in full sun, with healthy, green foliage. Will it ever bloom or do I have a dud?
Our Trumpet Vine is about 10 years old. It has thrived on neglect. A neighbor gave it to me in a box that used to have soft drink cans. I set it aside, kind of where I thought I might plant it. That thing grew roots right through the box and started up the fence post. We have never done anything to it. There are about 50 blooms on it this year.
Transplanting trumpet vine tip
Jamie: I think your problem may be humidity. Or lack of it. If you put some rocks under your plants and water well the rocks should hold the water longer and evaporate the moist
ure up to the leaves.
I just purchased three trumpet vines. The lady I bought them from told me to water well for ten days after transplant. Meaning flooding them well. They need the extra moisture to astablish themself after transplant.
Mine are planted in a part sun part shade area, and have done very well. I hope this helps. Linda
Linda: Rocks can’t hold in moisture, to release back to a plant. MULCH holds in water, but once rocks dry, there’s no wicking possible. That’s why rocks are used in drainage fields; they allow water to pass through but they don’t retain any water.
Not blooming
I have had trumpet vines for many years and I have only had a couple booms. Why are my plants not blooming?
I have two trumpet vines that I planted almost 7yrs ago on either side of my front window facing south. It wasn’t until this year that I finally got a few flowers on the one. What can I do to encourage more blooms for the future?
I bought a yellow and red trumpet vine that will hopefully scale two 6×6 post trellises. We live in MN. I will plant in a 5 gallon pail to control root spreading but one will be 3 feet from our house and two feet from the deck. Do you think there will be problems putting it this close to the house?
Jesse: Be advised, that what you are creating, by having your Trumpet Vines planted into a pail, is a Trumpet Bonsai. A plants top growth MUST be matched by it’s root mass, so you can’t expect a large, massive display of leaves and flowers, from a poor vine that is imprisoned in a pail. It just won’t work for the long run. Also, plant roots have massive hydraulic pressure and “Where there’s a will, there’s a way”, and your Trumpet Vine just may break the container walls (down the road) so they can escape their imprisonment and grow unfettered. I’d no more place a Trumpet Vine in a container than I would a Birch Tree or Oak Tree. Some things are just meant to be honoured for how they grow and WE need to do the adapting, not the plants! Also, I’d be severely worried about the roots in that bucket: if you got torrential rain for days, water would be trapped inside and even with drainage holes, the water would be held too long within the bucket. And, what about drought? The plants roots will be very dependent upon YOU watering them, since they can’t travel to a depth to get a water. Remember also, since you’ll need to provide drainage holes, the vines roots will follow the water, go down the drainage holes, expand them and ultimately escape the container, foiling your plans! Just some things to think about before you get disappointed by this lovely plant.
I just planted three trumpets on my east wall. A number of their leaves are turning crispy brown. Any ideas on what the issues are?
Bloom time
hi ..my 5 year old trumpet plant is in full bloom ..how long will it bloom for ..do i trim it back when the flowers die off ..do i dead head it ..ty ..judy
On the 3 trumpet vines I maintain at client’s, the bloom time is about 3.5 to 4 solid months! Last year, they began blooming 28th of May, as we had such an early, flawless Spring. THIS year, they didn’t begin blooming until the Fourth of July….a full 6 weeks later!!! The later it gets into their bloom season, the fewer buds will be on the plant, with the mid-way point having the largest display of blooms.
Didn’t see previous answer. Thanks. I’m putting half in the reefer, sowing the other half now. We’ll see how it goes. Pete (Cartago, Costa Rica)
Let us know what happened.
Poisonous
i have trumpet vines all over my yard and i have a dog i always watch to make sure he dosent eat any but i want to know if there poisonous to him?
Cold stratification
I purchased some trumpet vine seeds through a catalog. Don’t know how fresh they are but they look good. Instructions say to cold stratify 6-8 weeks OR sow after frost. No frost where I live. Should I still “cold stratify” them or sow them now? Is the cold process an absolute requirement? Thanks for any help. Pete
Yellowing leaves
I recently saved a orphaned trumpet vine by transplanting it from the ground into a container. It started out great, but now all the leaves are turning yellow and starting to fall off. Over watered? Let it dry out? will this correct itself?
I HAVE A 5 YEAR OLD TRUMPET VINE GROWING RIGHT NXT TO MY OUTSIDE ATTACHED GARAGE WALL AND I KEEP PULLING AWAY FROM THE WALL AND IT NOW HANGS FORWARD AND IT IS HELD UP BY A TIE. WILL THE PLANT BLOOM THIS WAY AND WILL IT HURT MY ATTACHED GARAGE IN ANY WAY. I DO PULL ANY RUNNERS THAT COME UP IN OTHER SPOTS BECAUSE I DON’T WANT IT TO GO ON ANY OTHR PLACES ON MY PROPERTY OR MY NEIGHBORS PROPERTY.