PlantFiles: Moonflower, Moon Vine, Giant White Moonflower
Ipomoea alba 'Meekerii'

An acquaintance handed me a muddy little plant she'd jerked out of the ground about a year ago. She told me it was a "moonflower," and was very hardy. Hardy!! Talk about an understatement! Here in the warm, moist, highly acidic northwest corner of California, It's growing like gangbusters. It's almost scary -- I think it could easily do a kudzu thing. Since I planted it to hide the death throes of a shed, I think it's gonna do the trick. But I don't think anyone can control this plant -- it's off and running. It's beautiful and invasive.

This is a dark-seeded form of I. alba. The seedling proved to be very cold hardy, surviving short periods of freezing temps when I placed it out a little too early. Other tropical species I had planted near it experienced damage resulting in death. The mature vine isn't near as aggressive as the white-seeded form, being somewhat slow growing in spite of the fact that it's planted in an area that gets ample moisture. The vine also tends to be more wiry with less of the typical red pigmentation that the white has, and the flowers aren't quite as large. This may be a better cultivar for those who want the flowers, but not the massive amount of vines the white one produces, and also good for those who live in colder areas who have trouble growing this species.