Passiflora is a perennial liana plant that has a very decorative appearance with its beautiful flowers and creeping and branching form of growth. Due to these qualities, it is used by many specialist gardeners, such as vertical landscaping of balconies, homes and office buildings. Passionflower originates from Brazil and belongs to the family Passifloraceae. The length of the stems of this plant reaches several meters, and it is attached in height by supports, of different shapes.
The leaves of the Passion flower are palmate in shape, consisting of 5 to 6 sections depending on the species and variety, with a leaf length of about 10 centimeters. The plant is attached to the supports with the help of whiskers that protrude from the axils of the leaves. The flowers of this species are large with exceptional decorative qualities, their diameter is about 8 centimeters, they are star-shaped, in the middle of the flower are three large stamens, pistil and 72 filamentous growths, which make the color quite spectacular.
Flowering in passionflower is extremely long, starting in June, and can continue during the winter months, provided appropriate conditions. The flowers appear sequentially on the branch, dissolving one by one every 10 days, and the duration and triplicity of the individual flower is only one day.
Passion flower is a species that loves sunny habitats, as the soil mixture should be fertile, the most suitable is a mixture of chimovka, leaf litter, sand, and well-rotted manure, in a ratio of 4: 3: 2: 1. in case of inappropriate ratio and unsuitable soil mixture, the flowering of the plant may be reduced or lost.
There are many created varieties, many of which are valued in landscaping those with pure white flowers of Passiflora caerulea, as well as varieties with blue and dark pink flowers. The shapes with different colors of the crown are also appreciated. Passionflower is propagated by seeds or cuttings, and the easy option is by taking no differences from the plant because the seeds have a hard shell and are subject to processing before sowing.
The seeds are sown in May, the cuttings take root in spring and summer, and this can happen in winter at temperatures above 18 degrees. The differences take root extremely easily, both in water and in a torso-sand mixture. It is necessary to make good drainage of the pots. Passion flower loves regular watering, which is mandatory in the summer months, and in autumn and spring irrigation is reduced, but the soil should not be allowed to dry out, which is very harmful to the plant.
During the winter, the plants should be removed from the balcony and stored in rooms with a temperature not lower than 10 degrees. A very useful plant used in landscaping balconies, conservatories, terraces and more. It is used as a stand-alone plant or in combination with other vines to achieve a vertical decorative effect in landscaping.