Morning glory, Ipomoea tricolor, is a frost tender annual climber that bears beautiful, exotic-looking, colourful flowers on fast-growing twining stems clothed with heart-shaped green leaves. Morning glories usually have to be grown from seed as ready-grown plants are rarely available. The name 'morning glory' comes from the plants’ flowering habit – saucer-shaped blooms open early and just for a day, fading by mid-afternoon in hot weather. Many flowers are borne in succession, so this plant makes a lovely display for months, flowering through summer and into early autumn. The blooms are up to 8cm across and come in a range of varieties and colours of which the best-known is ‘Heavenly Blue’, which bears azure-blue, white-throated flowers, with purple, red, pale blue, and bi-coloured flowers also available. Morning glory can grow up to several metres high or can be limited to the height of its support to around 1.5-2m.
How to grow morning glory
Sow morning glory seeds in early spring and grow on in a warm well-lit spot indoors or in a heated greenhouse. Harden off young plants before planting in early summer with a suitable support on which to climb. Keep evenly moist, feed when in flower, and deadhead to encourage more blooms. Pull up and compost plants at the end of the season.
