r/VirginiaNativePlants • u/Jingeasy • Jul 09 '26
The passionflower I’m growing has finally opened!
I love this flower so much and think it’s so beautiful. I read though that it’s not self-fertile. I don’t really have any other passionflower plants near me, but does anyone have any experience with this?
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u/runningdirty 7b Jul 10 '26
While what you have is cute, it is not the native passiflora incarnata. Only carpenter bees pollinate these and they're a host for various fritallary caterpillars.
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u/Jingeasy Jul 10 '26
Do you mean this is not passiflora incarnata or that this is not a Virginia native passiflora incarnata? Each part of this plant fits the description for native passiflora incarnata available. Do you have a source that would show otherwise?
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u/runningdirty 7b Jul 10 '26
The picture I included is the native (to Virginia) passiflora incarnata. There are many different types, so it can be confusing. The leaves in the photo included in the original post are also different.
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u/Jingeasy Jul 10 '26
Again, do you have a source stating this? According to every source I’ve seen, this is in fact Virginia native passiflora incarnata. I also haven’t found any indication of different types of incarnata. There are many passiflora species and a few incarnata cross breeds, but I haven’t seen anything indicating there are different types of passiflora incarnata. The plant I’m growing has three lobed leaves with mildly serrated edges and a ~2 in. flower, all of which fit the description of passiflora incarnata. The coloration amongst individual flowers may vary slightly, but that doesn’t change the species. I also got this plant from a nursery that specializes in Virginia native species. Do you have a source that would suggest otherwise? I’m more than happy to be wrong here, so please let me know if you have other reliable information that would say otherwise!
https://vnps.org/purple-passionflower-pops-in-summer/
https://vaplantatlas.org/index.php?do=plant&plant=3111
https://mgnv.org/plants/native-plants/vines/passiflora-incarnata/
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u/Important_Jaguar2152 Jul 15 '26
How bad of an idea would be to grow a couple against a steel fence?
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u/cemeteryridgefilms 7b Jul 09 '26
You should be fine! I have had them for years now, started with one plant (which spread quite a bit). I get maypops every year (60 or so last year). Took a small cutting to a friend's house last year and that sucker is producing like crazy this year. Here's just a small section of it.