Beautiful climbing vines with striking flowers. They begin blooming in June and July and continue until hard frost. Increasingly popular grown on trellises, fences, or arbors.
Also known as MAYPOP, attractive, hardy perennial vine native to the Eastern US. Freezes to the ground in the winter and re-grows, flowers, and bears a tasty fruit the next season.
The oval or round, 2" diameter fruits produced in late summer have a leathery rind and a yellowish, juicy, aromatic flesh of tart but delightful flavor. The fruits are eaten fresh or sued for juices and sherbets.
Water vines during dry spells that may occur when they are growing actively.
We don't have much on fertilizing passion vines but the Hawaiian Agricultural Extension Service recommends use of a 10-5-20 fertilizer in that state, where all soils lack nitrogen. In other areas you can use a fertilizer with lower nitrogen content. In Hawaii they give each young plant, soon after planting, 4 cups of fertilizer; and make a second application of the same size six to eight weeks later. In our area we don't fertilize at all.
Native passion fruit vines will pop up from the ground away from the mother plant. These plants can cause problems if they come up say in your asparagus bed. So... plant your vine in an area that may have lawn close by or some other type deterrent so the vine won't spread where you don't want it to go.
A little history;
The history of Passiflora or Passion flower is fascinating and unique. It acquired its name from descriptions of its flower parts supplied in the 17th century by Spanish priests in South America, know at that time as the New Spain. It was known by the Spanish as La Flor de las cinco Llagas or the flower with the five wounds. Passionis referrers to Christs suffering. The parts were interpreted from drawings and dries plants by Giacomo Bosio, a churchman and historian, in Rome, 1609, as representing various elements of the Crucifixion.
Symbolism;
The five petals and the sepals are the ten disciples less Judas & Peter. The corona filaments are the crown of thorns. The five stamen with anthers match the five sacred wounds and the three stigma the nails. This symbolism is not universal however, in Japan it is sometimes known as "the Clock-faced Plant" and apparently has recently bee adopted as a symbol for homosexual Japanese youths.