Guide to growing garden plants - Ipomoea Morning Glory
Ipomoea are usually grown as annuals in the garden, although they can often be perennials.
They are a climbing plant that blooms with trumpet shaped flowers of pink, blue, white, purple or red (often two coloured) from summer to the early months of autumn.
Some of the common names for Ipomoea are Morning glory, Cypress vine and moonflower.
How to grow Morning Glory
It is best to grow morning glory in their final location outdoors. Sow the seeds at a depth of 6mm in a sunny area of the garden a couple of weeks after the last frost of spring. Ideally the soil that morning glory grows in will be moist and of pH 6 to 7.5; not to high in nitrogen or this will lead to straggly plants. Germination takes from one to three weeks, and can be enhanced by first chipping the seeds and imbibing in hot water for a day prior to sowing.
Caring for Morning Glory
Once the young morning glory seedlings have emerged they should be thinned to be about 30 to 45 apart, and given a trellis to climb upon. Once morning glory starts to climb on the trellis, pinch back the growing tips to encourage branching growth.