Ipomoea purpurea - Morning Glory Candy Pink Seeds

Ipomoea purpurea 'Candy Pink' is an easy-to-grow, very floriferous variety that features hot pink trumpet-shaped blooms. In one season, it sends out long, twining stems loaded with buds that burst into bloom against bluish-green foliage. It blends well with the rose pink flowers of Ipomoea 'Shiva', creating stunning ground covers or gorgeous airy displays when grown up a support. This generous climber thrives in a warm, sunny, sheltered position in loose, cool soil.

Ipomoea purpurea, poetically named Morning Glory, is a very vigorous perennial climber that belongs to the Convolvulaceae family. It is native to tropical America, probably Mexico. This tuberous rooted plant is not cold-hardy and is often treated as an annual in colder climates. 'Candy Pink' produces 2 m long, twining stems that are quick to scramble up nearby supports. From July until the first frosts, it produces an abundance of funnel-shaped corollas, each measuring between 5 and 7 cm in diameter. Silky-smooth to the touch, they display bright pink petals with reddish stars. Although the delicate blooms open and close in the space of day, they are constantly replaced on the plant. The stems bear 5 to 10 cm, oval to heart-shaped leaves, occasionally three-lobed. Their matt dark green colour really sets off the brightly coloured blooms. Each plant produces about 100 seed pods, i. e. about 600 seeds at the end of the growing season, before the first frosts.

Ipomoea is a distant cousin of common bindweed. Although it is distinctly less cold-hardy, it is such an enthusiastic grower that it makes an excellent annual. It thrives in any well-drained garden soil in a warm, sheltered position. It combines well with other short-lived climbers such as sweet peas or nasturtiums. It eagerly scrambles over trellises, pergolas, arches, balcony railings, trees, shrubs and even other vines such as clematis and wisteria. If it can't find a support, it can be left to roam free on the ground. Morning Glory is ideal for hiding unsightly walls or dead trees.