Moon vines

[roseycheeks]

I have a moon vine outside that I have been trying to get to grow, it has now started to vine so I tied a string to a piece of wire that I stuck in the ground beside it and tried to put the vine around it and a nail that is in the window frame. I hope it wil bloom before winter, it is a real pretty green and healthy looking and ever since it got cooler it is taking off. So is my Datura, it was looking kind of sickly until it got cooler and the days and nights were the same length. I will take a picture later on and show you what I did, and maybe some one can tell me if it will bloom any before the snow flies.

[rainbowgardener]

How can anyone tell you if it will bloom before the snow flies, if we have no idea when the snow flies where you are? Or how close to blooming your plant is?

I went back through some of your old posts trying to see if you had told us your location and found this one also about moonflower vine:

viewtopic.php?f=5&t=54855&p=313607#p313607

in which you said you are in zone 6, like me. If you are like me, frost might come in the next 2-3 weeks.

Is the moonflower vine pictured indoors in that thread, the same one that is now outdoors?

I have two moonflower vines. One that is in the ground, that got huge and has been blooming for months. I harvested 3 dozen more seeds from it today. The other one is in a pot and it got off to a slow start and got out competed at the beginning by other stuff in the pot that started faster. So it only recently finally started blooming.

But if I'm right that you don't have more than a few weeks until frost, I think if it doesn't already at least have the beginnings of buds on it, it probably won't make it.

moonflower buds:


http://images.fineartamerica.com/images ... -yoder.jpg


The bud on the left of the picture is about ready to open. The little bud on the right probably has several days to a week or so before it is open. Even before it gets to that size, you should be able to see the flower bud.

[rainbowgardener]

From your previous moonflower post, you made me start thinking about whether I should try bringing mine in for the winter, which I've never done before I'm still thinking about it. But I'm thinking the only reason for doing it would be for the experiment to see if I could keep it alive.

I'm doubting in my conditions that it would bloom indoors. And starting it from seed in the spring, it gets huge enough. I have two. The one in the ground would probably be impossible to dig out at this point; it has a trunk about an inch in diameter at the base. But the smaller one that is already in a pot would be manageable. Since I already have more plants to bring in than I have room for, I'm not sure if doing the experiment is worth it to me... but I'm still thinking about it!

[rainbowgardener]

So, what do you think, roseycheeks? When is frost expected for you and is your moonflower showing any sign of flower buds yet?

[rainbowgardener]

So did your moonflower ever bloom?

[roseycheeks]

No, none of them ever bloomed either inside or out, so hopefully next spring they will come back, where do I go to post a picture of my poinsettas? And my amaryllis stem, the one I had from last year didn't make it, it got bulb mites and I had to chuck it, so my hubby got me a Apple Blossom and it is doing good. So let me know where I can post these different photos.

[rainbowgardener]

I don't think you ever did tell us where you are located, but if I'm remembering right you are also in zone 6. Moonflower vine is a tender tropical perennial. If you are in zone 6, there is NO chance the one outdoors will survive your winter and come back in the spring. The one indoors may make it. Partly inspired by you , I did bring my smaller moonflower vine in for the winter. It is in a good sized container, in front of a window, with supplemental light from a lamp and I mist it daily. So far it is doing great, bloomed and set a seed just after it came in. Since then no more blooms, but it is putting out lots of new leaves. So I'm optimistic that it will make it through. Then the hard part will be transitioning it back outside.

We have a flower gardening section and a container gardening section. Either would probably be fine for posting your photos.