I love Moonflower Vines ! They look very similar to a Morning Glory Vine, and I planted some of both in the archway that Bobby put at the end of the sidewalk. We have been enjoying the pretty purple and violet morning glories most of the summer; but I thought that the Moonflower didn't make it until this morning, when I saw the long whitish bud on the trellis. Moonflowers come out in the evening, and they are much larger than morning glories are, and the only come in a dazzling pearly-white color. They are so delicate that they look like they are made of silk, and they almost glow with the depth of the whiteness. I hope that we get lots more blossoms so that I can save some of the seeds to plant next year.
We had moonflowers at our previous house. We don't really have a place for them to climb now. Sweet potatoes are also kin to morning glorys. They have dark purple flowers.
@Yvonne Smith Do the Moonflowers have a scent? I remember reading about them a while back, because I want some, but I don't recall if they were in the fragrant nightbloomer category. They're so pretty! @Sheldon Scott I have the sweet potato vines, those are so easy to grow even I can't kill them!
The moonflower by the back porch is blooming. Since it only blooms at night, I have missed getting a picture several times already; but tonight, I got out there in time to get a few snapshots of it. They are just so delicate and beautiful !
https://www.bhg.com/gardening/plant-dictionary/annual/angels-trumpet/ We used to keep brugmansia, angels trumpet. I thought moonflowers were in the datura family. I love all of them but I thought datura are free standing, not vining. We have little white vining flowers but they are wild and stay open during the day. I am confused. We were just given a 'devil's apple' plant. The seed pods of those are thorny, thus the name. I love your picture of your moonflower. How large is the blossom.
Moonflower vines are actually in the same family as Morning Glories and sweet potatoes, @Mary Stetler . From what I have read, the vies and seeds of the moonflower are not supposed to be edible, like the sweet potato vines are; but I haven’t really looked into this part of it, since i only grow them because i love the appearance and scent of the moonflower. Mine was about 3-4” across, and we had two more bloom last night and more buds coming up. I am hoping that at least some of the blossoms are female so that we get some seed poses for next year. There is apparently a species of the datura family that is also called moonflower, or devil’s trumpet, and that one is definitely poisonous. I was just looking up pictures, and while the flowers look almost identical, it appears that the datura moonflower grows more as a bush than a vine and the blossoms are much larger, more like the angel’s trumpet , which is all from the same datura family.
I wish the sweet potato vines were as beautiful as the flower you put up. I have vines growing in the bedroom window. Only inside flowers now are Peace Lilley.
Actually, the sweet potato blossoms are beautiful also; but they bloom early in the morning, just like regular morning Glory’s do. I have not seen any blooms on mine yet, but I am watching and will take pictures if i find any blooms. The okra plant also has a similar blossom and it is very pretty, too. This is a picture of someone’s sweet potato in bloom, so you can see how pretty the flowers are, @Marie Mallery .
How pretty, mine probably need more phosphate, but I was growing them for slips, so I didn't take good care of them. I agree about the okra flowers too.
Our moonflowers on the arch over the sidewalk have finally started blooming, and we have been enjoying them in the evenings and taking pictures. Tonight, there were 9-10 of them on both sides of the trellis, and I took pictures. This is the best one, and you can see 2 of the blooms from the other side towards the bottom of the photo on the right side.
I finally got 6 Angel's trumpets this week. I have been watering twice a day and fertilizing. Nothing. Then all of a sudden SIX. But also discovered a bad case of spider mite, not dry weather, had been causing the leaves to fall. A systemic fertilizer/pesticide seems to have worked. I wonder if they have a blooming season. I bring it in in the winter so it should know no season.
Angel Trumpets are beautiful also, @Mary Stetler , and I remember having a white one many years ago. My friend had one of the lavender ones, and she kept it inside and had it for several years. The moonflowers to me are like giant Morning Glory’s, and sort of the opposite in some ways. They open on a short base, unlike the Angel Trumpet, which has that long stem and the open bell at the end, where the moonflowers open flat like a morning glory. The vines are similar, too, and where morning glory blossoms come in all sorts of pretty colors, the moonflower is only that silky white, almost glowing in the late afternoon and evening. I am hoping to get some seeds from the moonflower vine, so I have some to plant again next spring.