Plant Library

Other Names:  Passion Fruit, Passion Flower

Description:

One of the more spectacular vines for the garden; the large flowers are showy and distinctive, and the dark purple fruits are edible and attractive; wonderful for covering an arbor, trellis or lattice, the flowers are individually beautiful close up

Ornamental Features

Purple Passionfruit features showy lightly-scented crimson star-shaped flowers with purple overtones and white eyes at the ends of the branches in mid summer. The flowers are excellent for cutting. It features an abundance of magnificent purple berries in late summer. The fruit can be messy if allowed to drop on the lawn or walkways, and may require occasional clean-up. It has dark green deciduous foliage. The compound leaves do not develop any appreciable fall color.

Landscape Attributes

Purple Passionfruit is a multi-stemmed deciduous woody vine with a twining and trailing habit of growth. Its average texture blends into the landscape, but can be balanced by one or two finer or coarser trees or shrubs for an effective composition.

This is a relatively low maintenance woody vine, and is best cleaned up in early spring before it resumes active growth for the season. It is a good choice for attracting birds, bees and butterflies to your yard. It has no significant negative characteristics.

Purple Passionfruit is recommended for the following landscape applications;

• Accent
• Hedges/Screening
• General Garden Use

Planting & Growing

Purple Passionfruit will grow to be about 15 feet tall at maturity, with a spread of 30 inches. As a climbing vine, it tends to be leggy near the base and should be underplanted with low-growing facer plants. It should be planted near a fence, trellis or other landscape structure where it can be trained to grow upwards on it, or allowed to trail off a retaining wall or slope. It grows at a fast rate, and under ideal conditions can be expected to live for approximately 10 years.

This woody vine does best in full sun to partial shade. It does best in average to evenly moist conditions, but will not tolerate standing water. It may require supplemental watering during periods of drought or extended heat. It is not particular as to soil type or pH. It is somewhat tolerant of urban pollution. Consider applying a thick mulch around the root zone in winter to protect it in exposed locations or colder microclimates. This species is not originally from North America.