Morning glory and moonflower vine in mel's mix?

15 years ago

Hello,

I just started square foot gardening and eventhough it feels a little wasteful, I wanted to grow mostly flowering annuals and perennials to begin with - haven't ventured into world of fruits and veggies yet. In the squares in the back of my box (that sits up against my front porch) I planted some morning glory and moonflower vine hoping that they would climb up the porch and look and smell good. I think they are just annuals in my zone so I'm not too worried about the vines becoming invasive. My question is this: is Mel's mix too "rich" to let the MGs flower? Has anyone else done this and had flowers or do you just end up with foliage?

Greatly appreciate any advice,

Amna

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Comments (8)

holly-2006
15 years ago
I planted a clematis in Mel's Mix and it took off like crazy. It's over 8' tall now.
Ray Scheel
15 years ago
Morning glory will reseed to some extent, but I've had them sprout and flower in straight compost, so soil richness is not a hindrance to them...
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Hi, I sowed Moonflower Vine directly into a large container on 6/3. I am sure I could have gotten them in 2 weeks earlier than that but my pots weren't ready. They are climbing a large hoop that is anchored in two large pots. No sign of blooms yet. This is the second time I am growing them and I remember the first time I tried them, they barely had time to bloom before the first frost. I tried them again because I saw a Backyard Habitat episode about Hummingbird Moths and they are supposed to be attracted to the Moonflower Vine. Plus, we had a late fall frost last year and I had left over seed, so in they went. I am having the same thing happen that Karen did, with the lower leaves yellowing and falling off. I don't mind because I grew MGs on the same hoop and their foliage is keeping the bottom full of leaves. The MGs, I had seedlings to plant in the same pot on 6/3 and they just started blooming last week.
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You are likely to have good results with any of the Ipomoea nil http://davesgarden.com/guides/pf/adv_search.php?searcher%5Bcommon%5D=&searcher%5Bfamily%5D=&searcher%5Bgenus%5D=Ipomoea&searcher%5Bspecies%5D=nil&searcher%5Bcultivar%5D=&searcher%5Bhybridizer%5D=&searcher%5Bgrex%5D=&search_prefs%5Bblank_cultivar%5D=&search_prefs%5Bsort_by%5D=cultivar&images_prefs=with&Search=Search Ipomoea purpurea http://davesgarden.com/guides/pf/adv_search.php?searcher%5Bcommon%5D=&searcher%5Bfamily%5D=&searcher%5Bgenus%5D=Ipomoea&searcher%5Bspecies%5D=purpurea&searcher%5Bcultivar%5D=&searcher%5Bhybridizer%5D=&searcher%5Bgrex%5D=&search_prefs%5Bblank_cultivar%5D=&search_prefs%5Bsort_by%5D=cultivar&images_prefs=with&Search=Search Ipomoea tricolor http://davesgarden.com/guides/pf/adv_search.php?searcher%5Bcommon%5D=&searcher%5Bfamily%5D=&searcher%5Bgenus%5D=Ipomoea&searcher%5Bspecies%5D=tricolor&searcher%5Bcultivar%5D=&searcher%5Bhybridizer%5D=&searcher%5Bgrex%5D=&search_prefs%5Bblank_cultivar%5D=&search_prefs%5Bsort_by%5D=cultivar&images_prefs=with&Search=Search Ipomoea alba http://davesgarden.com/guides/pf/adv_search.php?searcher%5Bcommon%5D=&searcher%5Bfamily%5D=&searcher%5Bgenus%5D=Ipomoea&searcher%5Bspecies%5D=alba&searcher%5Bcultivar%5D=&searcher%5Bhybridizer%5D=&searcher%5Bgrex%5D=&search_prefs%5Bblank_cultivar%5D=&search_prefs%5Bsort_by%5D=cultivar&images_prefs=with&Search=Search Ipomoea turbinata http://davesgarden.com/guides/pf/go/69456/ or Ipomoea macrorhizza http://davesgarden.com/guides/pf/showimage/65128/ would all be suitable for the moonvines... The MG's do well with a Phosphorus based Bloom Booster...despite Myth-conceptions regarding various MG's and 'fertilizers'... Plant 6 to 12 inches apart... All aspects of MG's answered in the multiple threads located in the Forum dedicated to Morning Glories... Hope that helps... Ron Here is a link that might be useful: Dedicated Morning Glory Forum
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Marianne, I am only guessing but hope to be of some help. I don't think the heat in Corpus is a problem for either your MGs or your MFs. If both plants are not performing for you, I have to suspect that it's something in your soil - exactly what though, I cannot even guess at that. Another possibility is "too much care" or "babying." In our experiences with these plants (DW & I), they seem (moreso than many other plants) to have minds of their own - they will grow where you don't want 'em, & not grow where you want 'em. The volunteers that I've whacked repeatedly with a string trimmer, or torn or sheared runner-by-runner to keep within desired space, almost seem to say "THANKS!" and rebound with a vengeance. In contrast, the seeds I am trying to start right now...so far only 1 of 6 for the Heavenly Blue have shown up, and even that one is a pitiful, reluctant-looking thing. In frustration, I'm about to just scrape bare a patch of scraggly-looking St. Augustine, scratch the dirt a little, and just throw seeds on the dirt and leave them to the mercy of the elements. (I can tell the seedlings apart.) If they sprout, I'll transplant them to where I prefer them to be while they're still small. If none sprout, I'm steeling myself to have an "oh well" attitude. Used to be I could not fail with MFs. Now all we can manage in our garden is volunteer MGs. Wishing you better luck Marianne!
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shebear
15 years ago
Wow I beg to differ ray.....everytime I've planted morning glory in rich soil, I've not gotten alot of flowers. I got tons of green but few blooms.

But hey it's worth a try.......you might have better luck.
amna
Original Author
15 years ago
Thank you everyone for your input. I went ahead and put them in - we'll see what happens.

Thanks again,
Amna
amna
Original Author
15 years ago
Just an update - saw my first morning glory today :-)
sinfonian
15 years ago
If you want the ones that are trying to take over my rose garden, smothering everything in site after 10 years of trying to get them out of there, you're more than welcome to them. Sure they're pretty, until they kill 30 year old roses. hehe.

Just remember, if you remove them, get every INCH of root/underground runner vine or they will come back strong the next year. Seriously. /shudder

Here is a link that might be useful: Sinfonian's garden adventure
medontdo
15 years ago
keep them contained!! i'd put them on a vine, that's what i do every time when i do mine, like twine or something. or else ohhhh myyyy goodness!! talla "my little one> brought me home one for mommies day, so i niavly planted it in the ground, and watched it so beautifully take over the area it was in, to this day everytime i see a beginner, i pull that baby!! i dont even let it bloom, i know what can happen to an unmanaged flower, in that particular area, it would be. errr!!! LOL
however, i do plant others and put them on twine and let them grow up it,spread the length i want and prune. i'm with sinfonian, **shudder** put it on twine!!! LOL ~Medo

only a little nutso!!! LOL *grinning*
sinfonian
15 years ago
I mentioned this to my aunt, who's the plant gardener in the family. She said maybe the morning glories discussed here are annuals. Apparently there is such a thing as annual morning glories that grow from seeds and do not send out runners or take over the world. That wouldn't be nearly so bad. I admit they're beautiful flowers. Mine are white. Hehe I like white flowers. However, my perennial (read weed) ones take over my rose garden every year despite gutting them annually.

Oh, and I'd say just about every plant would kill for Mel's mix. Except maybe cacti, or the like. hehe

Here is a link that might be useful: Sinfonian's garden adventure

Morning glory and moonflower vine in mel's mix?

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holly-2006

Ray Scheel

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Morning glory and moonflower vine in mel's mix?

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holly-2006

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shebear

amnaOriginal Author

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