Passiflora Essenza- Passion Flower

The Passiflora 'Essenza' is a very rare hybrid passionflower with stunning large violet flowers! With their long blue-violet filaments lightly streaked with white, and their soft yellow stamens against a background of lavender petals, they are a feast for the eyes. This 3 to 4 metre (10 to 13 feet) tall vine-plant is suitable for container cultivation on a terrace or under a veranda, or in the ground wherever temperatures do not drop below -2°C (28.4°F).

Mostly native to tropical areas of South America, passionflowers belong to the large family of passifloras, which includes 400 species and many spontaneous or horticultural hybrids.

'Essenza' is a recent and very rare hybrid, the result of remarkable selection work by Italian breeder Stefania Mattiuzzo. It is a cross between two renowned American varieties from 1999: P. 'Inspiration' (dark violet-blue) and P. 'Temptation' (dark purple and light violet). 'Essenza' is a robust and easy-to-grow voluble plant, loving sunny and warm conditions but fearing temperatures below -2°C (28.4°F). Fortunately, it has a fairly compact growth habit, so it will be very happy cultivated in a large pot on a terrace, which can be brought indoors during winter. Voluble, it clings to its support with tendrils, reaching a height of 3 to 4 metres (10 to 13 feet). It is characterized by its sturdy stems adorned with leaves divided into 3 pointed and dentate lobes, of a shiny medium green. Its flowering extends from spring to autumn, in the form of large flowers of about 10 to 12 cm (4 to 5in) in diameter that constantly renew themselves on the plant. These flowers are composed of sepals and petals in lavender blue, completely covered by a crown of long dark blue-violet filaments streaked with white, with a highly frizzled blue tip. The purple-violet centre is occupied by yellow stamens.

This Passion Flower, hardy down to -2°C (28.4°F) (an established plant will tolerate short periods of frost down to -5°C (23°F)), grows in any well-drained, light, fairly deep, and not too dry soil, in a sunny and sheltered location. Pruning, at the end of flowering, consists of reducing the branches to maintain a beautiful habit. With its 3 to 4-metre (10 to 13 feet) height and its generous exotic flowering, the 'Essenza' passionflower is a wonderful plant for dressing up walls, fences, grilles, porches, and trellises. It will also be highly appreciated in verandas, where it will withstand cold winters without damage.