Passion Flower Vine: Grow Your Own Romantic Garden

1 passion flower

Vines are definitely some of the most romantic types of plants you can grow in your garden. The way they wrap around a trellis or a fence can create an effortless fairytale atmosphere. Among the many types of vines you could choose for your garden, the passion flower vine is guaranteed not to disappoint when it comes to beauty, color, and charm. If this sounds like something you’d want to grow in your garden, today’s article is perfect for you. We’ll talk about the main steps you have to go through to grow a passion flower vine.

How to Grow a Passion Flower Vine in 6 Steps

1. Learn More about the Plant

The first thing you need to know about the passion flower is that it’s also called Passiflora. Interestingly enough, the Passiflora genus contains hundreds of species, which means it can be difficult to realize which one the passion flower is. What contributes to the confusion even more is the fact that not all species are vines. They’re also shrubs, perennials, annuals, or trees. What do they have in common, you ask? The answer is the exotic flowers that you can only admire in their full splendor for about a day at a time.

The flowers are made up of a wide and flat base that contains a couple of rings of filaments right in the center. The center surrounds a stalk that contains the stamens and the ovary. One flower holds between 5 and 10 petals. The usual colors you can expect them to have are pink, blue, purple, red, and white. The stalk is tall and can be distinguished quite easily due to the delicate filaments that encircle it. When it comes to foliage, the passion flower vine has either ovate or lobed leaves that are alternate and grow on whatever support system you provide.

2. Provide It with Perfect Growing Conditions

Even though the passion flower vine looks very exotic and like a plant you’d find in a tropical area, you can actually grow it in the United States in a relatively mild area. If you live in the USDA hardiness zone 6 to 10, you can grow a successful passion flower vine as long as you follow the instructions in today’s guide.

The first thing you should know about the appropriate growing conditions for a passion flower vine is that it grows best in full sun to partial shade. This is when the plant is most healthy and full of blooms. If you live in a place where the climate is extremely hot, you should keep in mind that the plant will need shade in the afternoon. Other than that, as long as you manage to find a place for it that balances sun and shade, your plant will reward you with beautiful blooms.

If you’re going to grow your plants in the USDA hardiness zone 6, you have to provide them with special winter protection, otherwise, they won’t stand the cold. In terms of soil, the best one is one that drains well and is full of nutrients. Moreover, you should make sure the soil is constantly moist because that’s when the passion flower vine grows best. In the case of a drought, water the plant constantly, if you don’t want it to wilt and die. The pH of the soil should be neutral, so somewhere in between 6.1 and 7.5.

Finally, we also urge you to consider the fact that the passion flower is a vine, which means it needs something to grow on. What does this mean for your garden? Well, first of all, it means you need to make sure you have enough space to grow it. Second of all, you have to build a trellis for it or some other structure that can support it. Another plant works as well.

3. Plant the Seeds

There are multiple ways in which you can grow a passion flower vine. You can grow it from cuttings taken from an already established plant, from rhizomes, layering, and seed. Growing it from seed is the most common option, so that’s the one we’ll talk about today.

What you can do in order to grow a passion flower vine from seed is to buy a potted passion flower vine, allow it grow fruits, and when the fruits are ripe, open the pods and take out the seeds. The seeds can be quite sensitive, so handle them with care. First, clean them. Then, allow them to dry. Next, start them in warm water. Keep in mind that it’s not easy to get them to sprout.

seeds taken from a passion flower vine

In order to start them, you have to place them in warm water and keep them there for 1 to 2 days. After the allotted time has passed, check the seeds for floating ones. Those that float need to be discarded, while those that have sunk to the bottom of the container are those which are viable.

Next, take the viable seeds and place them in some damp potting mix. You don’t have to bury them, just place them on top and pat down. That’s because, in order for them to germinate, they need exposure to light. They also need moisture, so you’ll have to place the container in a sealed plastic bag. For even better chances of the seeds sprouting, provide heat to the bottom of the pot. One way in which you can do that is to place it on top of the refrigerator. Alternatively, you can also use a heat mat.

After you’re done with all of these steps, it’s a waiting game. The seeds might take weeks or even months to sprout, so you have to be patient. In order to help them out the best you can, ensure the soil is moist at all times. Once the sprouts are out, make sure they don’t get into contact with direct sunlight until they grow true leaves. Also, don’t take the plants out of their container until you have to transplant them, which will be when they have multiple sets of leaves.

4. Water the Plant

When it comes to watering the passion flower vine, its growing season is the time when you need to pay attention to this the most. Whether you’re going to grow it outside or indoors in a container, you have to make sure the soil doesn’t dry out. In winter, you don’t need to water it as often. In fact, since container plants need compost to protect them in winter, you should allow the surface of the compost you place around them to dry out a bit before you water it again.

5. Feed the Plant

As most other plants, the passion flower vine needs feeding as well. This is what helps it grow healthy and provide you with many beautiful blooms. Luckily, a general fertilizer is all it needs, as long as you apply it regularly during the growing season.

6. Prune the Vine

As we’ve already established, the passion flower vine climbs on any support system by itself. However, that doesn’t mean you can’t train it to grow in the direction you want. Most people go for a fan shape because that looks incredibly well on trellises and fences. If you’re into a wilder look and prefer flowers to grow as they wish, you don’t have to train it.

passion flower vine growing on a wooden frame

Still, if you do want to do that, you should know this also entails pruning it. You should do this immediately after the plant has flowered. Shorten the tips and side shoots that have flowered until there are only a few buds left. What you should remember is that the buds need to be part of the main framework in order for the plant to grow to resemble a fan.

Spring is another time when you can prune your plant, but this is a mere necessity. What does that mean, you ask? Well, you only need to prune it if during the winter, the plant has been damaged by frost or has overgrown. Cut back the desired stems to about 2 feet from soil level. Whenever you can, cut to a side shoot or bud. In response, the plant will grow new shoots. In fact, it might even grow too many, in which case you’ll have to thin them out and train them. Finally, we need to mention the fact that this process will reduce flowering for one to two years, so you should consider this before doing it.

Summing Everything Up

Would you like to create a romantic setting in your garden or backyard? Among the many things you could do to accomplish that, we recommend planting a passion flower vine. This exotic-looking plant takes a while to get started, but once you have it in your garden, you won’t regret investing some time and energy into growing it. Whether you build a trellis for it, allow it to grow on other plants, or surround your garden fence with it, the passion flower vine will become one of the most admired plants in your garden.

Before we go, we want to leave you with this interesting and useful video that talks about some random facts related to the passion flower vine. We hope you enjoy it!

Image Source: 1,2,3

1 comment
  1. Thanks for the excellent information. This will be my first time trying from seed. Sounds like a patience game..lol

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