Flowering Passions (Passion Flower)

Member Name: Zmugzy

Product:	Passion Flower
Date:	12/03/06 (4093 review reads)
Rating:

Advantages: A Touch of Exotic Beauty

Disadvantages: Needs a bit of loving care and attention

There are over 500 known species of Passion Flower with different colours and shapes, but the most common is Passiflora Caerula - the Blue Passion Flower. For me the Passion Flower is one of the most beautiful and exotic looking flowers. The flower consists of a circle of white petals with a ring of purple along with blue and white pointed filaments in the centre. It looks almost otherworldly with its vivid features set off against a backdrop of deep green foliage.

The Passion Flower is so called not because of some imagined aphrodisiacal quality but because of an historical association with the Christian religion. Missionaries in tropical South America discovered the flower during the early part of the 18th century. To them the flower was a symbol of nature that was a portrayal of the crucifixion: the five stamens represented the five wounds of Christ on the cross; the central receptacle represented the main pillar of the cross; the three styles represented the nails with the hammer being represented by the ovary; the blue fringing corona was seen as the crown of thorns. Even the five sepals and five petals were symbolic of the ten faithful apostles (two are missing because Peter deceived
Christ and Judas betrayed him).


Growing Outdoors
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You should expect this flower to bloom from July to September. Passion Flowers need a well-drained soil in sun that warms up quickly in spring. The plant is a rampant grower, a vigorous climbing plant with tendrils that can be trained grow up a wall, over a fence or up a tripod of canes. It is best to choose four or five of the healthiest shoots to train the plant. Once established the flowered shoots can be cut back immediately after flowering to within two or three buds of the established plant structure. Dead and overcrowded stems can be removed during spring. It prefers warmer climates and thrives in hot summers but it is also a relatively hardy plant and will endure temperatures as low as -7C/20F.


Growing Indoors
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If you want to encourage more blooms then you can grow it in a pot so as to restrict the root growth. In this way the plant can then be effectively trained around a circular wire loop that can be attached to the pot. Re-pot annually during early spring for the first two years - potting on into a larger pot only when the root system really fills the pot. After two years just replace the topsoil with fresh compost each spring. In a container a free-draining John Innes No3 compost or similar should be used because Passiflora does not like to remain wet around the roots in winter. Water well everyday during the summer months, but only once a week or so during the winter. I would recommend that, during the summer, you feed the plant half the recommended dose of liquid feed added to water. Beware that over feeding can lead to lush leaf growth but very few flowers. If grown indoors make sure the room is well ventilated and avoid dry atmospheres. Only spray with water if you want to remove dust from the foliage. Flowers have short life spans - each one lasts only 24 hours, but the plant itself can last for years as long as it is given the right care and attention.


Sowing Seeds
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Seeds need to be soaked in a small glass of water in a warm location such as a sunny windowsill for two to three days. Healthy seeds will sink to the bottom of the glass. Floating seeds should be discarded. Plant the seeds in a pot at a shallow depth in a mix of well-watered light soil, preferably with a mixture of vermiculite and perlite. Put the pot on a saucer and place inside a plastic bag. Blow into the bag to inflate it then tie tightly at the top and leave in a warm place. You must ensure that the seeds never dry out.

Patience may be necessary as germination in my experience can vary from a few days up to a month or more. Initially leave the seedlings in the shade and pot them on quickly in a light potting mix while the root growth remains shallow. Keep the young plants in a plastic bag, but gradually roll it down over a week or so to let in the outside air. Finally place somewhere sunny with good air circulation.

Price
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Seeds should be easy to find at most garden centres or on line for less than £2.


Useful tip
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Avoid training the plant too tightly. You have to let it all hang out a bit. You are likely to get more flowers outdoors if you let the foliage droop and hang down rather than training it to be too neat and compact on a framework. This is also important if you want to encourage fruit production. When I have seen this plant growing in Brazil, it is usually grown more loosely, so that the foliage hangs down a framework rather than being trained to grow up it. The branches that droop a bit will be the ones most likely to flower.


The Fruits of your Labour
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Passion fruit have been grown as a semi-cultivated crop for thousands of years by the Aztecs, Incas & other indigenous people from South America. The Passiflora Caerula produces a tangy fruit rich in vitamin C but unless you have a warm green house, fruit production might be a bit of a challenge if you're a gardener living in a cooler climate. The Passion fruit when fully ripe has a hard outer skin of yellowish orange. Inside the fruit the flesh is watery, full of hard black seeds and has a very bitter acidic taste. However, you can scoop out the whole contents and put them in a blender. Dilute the contents with water and add sugar to taste. What you will have is a delicious drink that possesses relaxant properties. On a hot summer afternoon, rather than stirring the passions, it will have you dozing off in no time.

This review can only give you a brief introduction to this plant. More detailed and useful information can be found at: www.passionflow.co.uk. The Passiflora Society can also be found at: www.passiflora.org.

Summary: A beautiful exotic flower