Blue Sky Vine

13 years ago

Does anyone in the DFW area grow blue sky vine (thunbergia grandiflora)sometimes known as Bengal Clock vine? I have asked questions on the vine forum, but didn't get much response and am still having trouble getting any blooms. I bought this plant off the internet in the fall of 2008 after seeing it blooming beautifully in Pensacola. My thought was that the heat there would be about comparable to what we have. I got two small sprouted plants which I put into pots which went into my garage for the winter. We have florescent shop lights over my plant shelves in there and the blue sky vines began blooming during the winter!! I was so excited and moved the pots outside in the spring. They stopped blooming and grew lots more leaves and long vines. They didn't bloom last summer until right before frost and then I had to move them back to the garage. Since they were much bigger, the move was hard on them (and on me). They survived the winter in the garage under lights again and had some blooms when I moved them outside this spring. Again, they stopped blooming and I haven't had blooms all summer!! I fertilize them with blooming plant stuff, but in the garage I only give them water and no fertilizer at all, so I don't think that is the problem. I keep them moist and they get good light, but not direct sunlight in the afternoon. I just don't know what I'm doing wrong. If they didn't bloom in the garage during the winter I wouldn't be so confused and stumped about what to do!! Any ideas would be appreciated. The blooms are absolutely beautiful---I just love blue flowers and these are big with lovely throats of cream and nice leaves. Any ideas???!!!

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Comments (7)

annieinaustin
13 years ago
I don't grow it but am pretty sure Thunbergia grandiflora's bloom is triggered by daylength - one of those plants that bloom closer to time when days & nights are fairly equal. I've seen it blooming in Austin late September/October.
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garciafa
13 years ago
i live in navasota,tx its by bryan,tx or 72 mile from houston i have 7 of these vines mine bloom mostly in the winter starting around the end of sept. they go on until about late jan. then die down comes back around late march will have few blooms in april and then nothing until sept. i have mine in the ground and they all have come back even with the bad winter last year. there are beauiful.
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This is my FAVORITE vine! I have three of them! I bought two at Lowes and one at a garden shop. I have mine along my fence plus added lattice to the fence. They grow and grow and grow. Righ now, one is climbing to the top of my grapefruit tree and another up my elm (which I am okay with). My vines are in more of a shadier area and I had tons of blooms for an entire year. Then, the blooms have stopped. No blooms now for a few months. Anyone have any idea as to why and how I can get it blooming again? I threw bloom buster on it and it didn't do a thing. It had seemed to me that they didn't prefer baking in the sun. But, perhaps I am wrong? I have it mmixed in with a deep purple and white morning glory. Quite stunning when they are both blooming. One negative, do be careful where you put this vine. It does attract those biting, wood ants. Hummers seem to like the flowers as well.
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Leave it in a pot, or, even better, get a 2-3 gallon bucket and drill 1" holes around the sides (but NOT in the bottom!). Plant the vine in the bucket, then plant the bucket in the ground. This will allow the roots to grow out through the holes and get more water, etc., from the surrounding soil. Before your first frost, prune the top back to a manageable size, then cut around the outside of the bucket and lift for overwintering indoors. I did this with mine for a couple of years, and it worked beautifully. I also planted a second one directly in the ground, and it did well the first year. But when it had to re-sprout the next spring, it didn't reach blooming size until a few days before frost. I live in Zone 8a. Thunbergia grandiflora---Blue Sky Vine---rarely ever makes seeds, and I hear they're difficult to germinate and slow to flower from seed. They're mostly propagated by cuttings.
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Lynn, there's a variegated one?! COOL! Another thing I must. track. down. and. grow. You're keeping it moist, Debby? As in never letting it dry out? That may be a bit too much water, so maybe you can try letting it dry out before watering again and see what happens. Don't worry about killing it ~ we've got a big one at work that doesn't get much water and it's still plenty alive. Since they cut back on watering the grounds due to watering restrictions, it's been constantly wilted this past two months and it's still very alive with hardly any crispy leaves, relatively speaking. No blooms, but still alive. I imagine it'll bloom next year. And then it might not be overwatering either. Remember the little ditty about planting perennials? "First year they sleep, second year they creep, third year they leap." So I wouldn't give up on it for a while yet. Some plants just take a while to get going, and I wouldn't be surprised if this is one of them ~ I remember rooting some cuttings and it took three months for them to put out a new leaf, so it wouldn't surprise me if it took a while for them to settle into a new spot. I agree they're simply gorgeous! The past four months or so I've been working in the vine section at the nursery and have been eyeing them. Finally broke down and bought one last week. I can't wait 'til it gets huge and blooms!
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I had a massive sky vine growing on columns for a few years. We have since removed the columns but here is what I have learned. They love to have a good foliar spray. Instead of just watering the ground where it's rooted, spray the whole thing. My always perked up. Apply a flower fertilizer about every other month. Don't let the ground dry out, but don't get it waterlogged either.
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Deb Chickenmom
Original Author
13 years ago
Thanks for the information; sounds reasonable. It is supposed to be OK to zone 8, so maybe in the future I'll put one of the plants in the ground and mulch it heavily during the winter to see if it will survive. Also, maybe I can find a relatively protected area that might help with the cold. The flowers are so beautiful I think it is worth the extra effort. I need to try rooting some plants so I will have more to "play" with as I try to figure out where to put them in hopes of more blooms. I appreciate your ideas!
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wilo
13 years ago
I saw one blooming at the Antique Rose Emporium and I'm pretty sure I was there in late October.

I have one as well and it is growing pretty well, but no blooms for me either. Now I feel better. I had forgotten it was October when I saw that one blooming.
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susan75023
13 years ago
Hi, I live in the Dallas area and mine also bloomed beautifully in the garage in early winter. I asked the grower and he said it is day length sensitive so I have given up on it after three years. For someone who has an inside garden room with lots of windows, it would be a treasure.
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imabirdnut
13 years ago
Hey Chickenmom, I think I met you at a plant swap a couple of years ago. I had 2 types of clock vine in the ground & lost both of them this last hard winter we had. I was going to replace them but decided it wasn't worth the chance of another hard winter. I love the blooms but it makes sense now that annieinaustin said they are triggered by day length.
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Deb Chickenmom
Original Author
13 years ago
Yes, ImaBN, I think you gave me some seeds for pipevine at the Ft.Worth swap. Did your clock vines bloom well until the hard winter wiped them out? Did you have them for a few years before they died?
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Blue Sky Vine

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Blue Sky Vine

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