Passionflowers with mauve and violet flowers.

Passionflower 'Fata Confetto' - Passiflora x incarnata

Passionflower ‘Fata Confetto’ is a remarkable hybrid derived from Passiflora x incarnata, developed in 2006 by the Italian Maurizio Vecchia. This variety, resulting from the cross between Passiflora ‘Guglielmo Betto’ and Passiflora cincinnata ‘Dark Pollen’, stands out for its large fragrant purple flowers and its yellow-orange, oval fruits, tasty and sweet when ripe.

‘Fata Confetto’ tolerates temperatures down to -12°C, but requires protection from cold and damp during its first years.

The twining stems of this passionflower, which can reach up to 3 m in a season, bear glabrous leaves divided into three lobes, green with pale-yellow veins. Flowering lasts from June to October, with each stem able to bear up to 10 flowers of 8 cm in diameter, pleasantly scented and composed of cream-white tepals with a greenish tint and a crown of frizzled violet filaments striped with white. The heart of the flower contains five striped stamens with yellow anthers and three striped mauve styles.

It is useful for dressing walls, fences, and other supports. When paired with evergreen climbers or winter-flowering varieties, it contributes to a living display all year round. It adds a touch of whimsy to an evergreen hedge.

Common passionflower - Passiflora incarnata

La Passiflora incarnata, ou Passiflore officinale, est l’espèce utilisée en phytothérapie pour ses vertus médicinales, beyond its ornamental qualities. Ses fleurs mauve pâle, agréablement parfumées, couronnées de filaments frisés, s’épanouissent de l’été à l’automne et donnent naissance à des fruits verts devenant jaunes à maturité, comestibles et au goût agréable.

Rustique jusqu’à -10 à -12° C, la Passiflora incarnata nécessite un sol bien drainé, une exposition chaude en été pour une floraison optimale et un sol peu humide en hiver, c’est-à-dire très bien drainé. Elle s’accroche sur son support à l’aide de vrilles, pouvant atteindre une hauteur de 3 à 4 mètres en une saison. Les feuilles glabres, d’un vert foncé brillant, sont caduques en cas de gel. La floraison se poursuit parfois jusqu’en décembre dans des conditions climatiques favorables.

Cette liane volubile est idéale pour orner murs, clôtures et treillages. Les fruits de la passiflore, en plus d’être décoratifs, invitent à la dégustation par leur saveur unique. Cette passiflore nécessite la présence d’un second individu pour obtenir des fruits.

Passionflower 'Violacea' or 'Amethyst' - Passiflora Violacea

The Passiflora ‘Violacea’, also known as P. ‘Amethyst’, is one of the oldest horticultural hybrids of passionflowers, bred in 1824 by the French botanist Loiseleur-Deslongchamps. This hybrid, the result of crossing between the South American Passiflora caerulea and the Brazilian Passiflora racemosa, is renowned for its robustness and its resistance to cold. It has earned an Award of Garden Merit from the Royal Horticultural Society.

‘Violacea’ is distinguished by its medium-sized flowers, a deep mauve-violaceous hue, with a crown of filaments sometimes striped white or black, with a greenish-cream heart, lightly scented and occasionally producing hollow fruit. Its flowering period extends from summer to early autumn, with flowers 5–6 cm in diameter that renew themselves continuously.

It reaches 4 m in height and spreads to 3 m, supported by tendrils. Its quadrangular stems bear leaves divided into 3 to 5 ovate lobes, dark glossy green, sometimes coppery, and are more or less evergreen. The rare fruits, oval and orange at maturity, are often hollow and of little interest.

Easy to grow, the Passiflora ‘Violacea’ thrives in well-drained, light and fairly deep soil and enjoys a sunny, sheltered position. Pruning after flowering helps to maintain an attractive habit. It is suited to southern and Atlantic regions and to all regions where temperatures do not fall below -8°C.

Passionflower 'Eden'

Passiflora ‘Eden’ is an elegant hybrid with mauve-violet flowers. Reaching up to 4 metres tall, it features deeply lobed leaves in a dark glossy green, which showcase its spectacular flowers.

Resulting from the cross between Passiflora caerulea and P. ‘Amethyst’, Eden’s flowers are largely inspired by ‘Amethyst’, with bluish filaments on a dark centre, and green stamens arranged in a star around three purple stigmas. These striking flowers, measuring 10 to 15 cm in diameter, bloom from summer to autumn and are followed by decorative yellow-orange fruits, but not edible.

Moderately hardy, Passiflora ‘Eden’ is suited to outdoor cultivation in the ground only in the mildest regions. Elsewhere, it is ideal in a container on a terrace or balcony, where it can be sheltered in a cool, bright place over winter.

This passionflower can tolerate brief frosts down to -5 to -8 °C if its rootstock is well protected.

For cultivation, Eden prefers soil that is neutral to slightly acidic, cool and well-drained, and benefits from regular watering in summer, especially in Mediterranean climates.

In the ground, it enjoys a sunny and sheltered position, and can be trained along fences or trellises to maximise its visual impact.

In a container, it can be pruned to control its size.

Passionflower 'Incense'

Passiflora ‘Incense’, developed in Florida, United States, in 1973, is the offspring of a cross between the Passiflora incarnata, cold-hardy, and the P. cincinnata, less hardy and with contrasting flowers.

The flowers of Passiflora ‘Incense’ are highly scented and notable for their deep mauve-violet colour with a well-contrasted heart and blue-violet filaments. They flower from spring to autumn, attracting a myriad of butterflies, creating a dynamic visual display. The fruits that follow are oval, green-yellow, edible and particularly fragrant.

This voluble plant can reach up to 5 metres in height, clinging to its support with tendrils. The hardiness of this Passiflora allows it to survive temperatures down to -8°C, though precautions are necessary to protect the stump during cold winters.

Despite its resilience, Passiflora ‘Incense’ is susceptible to harbouring a virus which, although not greatly harmful to itself, can affect other more fragile passionflowers. It is therefore advised to grow it separately, monitor aphids and disinfect pruning tools used.

Passionflower 'Purple Passion'

Passiflora ‘Purple Passion’ is a variety introduced to the market in 2009 by Dutch horticulturists. This climber can reach up to 7 metres in height, making it an ideal solution for camouflaging an unsightly fence or barrier.

Its large flowers in an intense mauve colour, adorned with violet filaments and centred by four green stamens, are slightly scented and measure about 6 cm in diameter. Although the oval fruits of this passionflower are edible, they are distinguished more by their orange colour than by flavour, with a reddish pulp, not very sweet and not very aromatic.

Primarily suited to southern and Atlantic regions, Passiflora ‘Purple Passion’ can tolerate temperatures down to -5 °C. It thrives in rich, cool, well-drained soil, in full sun and sheltered from winds. In cooler climates, it is best to grow it in a large pot to bring it indoors over winter.

Ideal for adorning walls, fences, trellises, porches and lattices, Passiflora ‘Purple Passion’ is also an excellent option for conservatories, where it can over-winter unscathed, bringing a touch of the exotic and colour even during the coldest months. Pruning, carried out at the end of flowering, helps to maintain an attractive, compact habit.

Passionflower 'Empress Eugénie'

The Passiflora x belotii ‘Empress Eugenie’, a hybrid between the hardy Passiflora caerulea and the delicate Passiflora alata from the Amazon, is a climbing plant that can reach 4 to 5 metres in height on a trellis. It develops trilobed leaves, deciduous to semi-evergreen depending on frost, and above all magnificent flowers in shades of white, pink, mauve and violet. These flowers, 10 to 12 cm in diameter, display a first crown of cream-white sepals, followed by pink petals slightly mauve and a third crown of mauve-violet filaments, around yellow stamens and yellow-green stigmas.

Not very hardy, this passionflower will only survive in open ground in the mildest climates, where temperatures rarely drop below -5 °C. In colder regions, it is ideal as a conservatory or greenhouse plant, where it can be grown in a pot to keep its size in check.

In mild climates, the Passiflora ‘Empress Eugenie’ is used to beautify walls, fences and trellises. In cold zones, this passionflower adds an unparalleled touch of exotica when protected in winter in an unheated conservatory, providing year-round flowering and attractive foliage.