Gardening Guides
Great Design Plant: Butterfly-Friendly Crossvine
Colorful climber gives gardens a boost year-round with bountiful blooms
Nearly any garden can benefit from the addition of a vertical feature, and flowering vines like crossvine (Bignonia capreolata) really pull double duty in this capacity. A vigorous and prolific bloomer, crossvine offers gardeners stunning color, year-round interest and an opportunity to use vertical elements, such as trellises and arbors. Read on to learn how to incorporate crossvine successfully into an outdoor space that needs a colorful pick-me-up.
Distinguishing traits. Crossvine features tubular orange-yellow flowers that bloom prolifically from spring until fall and long evergreen leaves that take center stage during the colder months. It's a fairly low-maintenance vine, provided you give it consistent moisture. Although it will bloom in partial shade, the blooms will be more abundant in fuller sun.
How to use it. This vine is a long one, growing up to 40 feet, so be sure to give it a space that will accommodate it. Tall trellises, arbors, fences and walls will show it off beautifully, and although it is a clinging vine, it will appreciate a support system because of its length. A wire trellis along your fence line will support the vine without damaging your fence, making fence repairs or replacement much easier.
Crossvine can also be used in container plantings — just be sure to give it a large enough container for its roots to expand.
Crossvine can also be used in container plantings — just be sure to give it a large enough container for its roots to expand.
Planting notes.
- Dig a hole twice as big as the root ball of the plant, then carefully remove the vine from its nursery pot.
- Loosen the roots before placing it in the ground, then place soil around the root ball and gently tamp it down.
- Water it well and lightly mulch up to the base of the vine.
- If your vine already has some long tendrils, carefully spread them out and weave them onto your trellis or arbor to help the vine spread in the directions you wish it to grow.
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Common name: Crossvine
USDA zones: 6a-9b (find your zone)
Water requirement: Moderate
Light requirement: Sun to partial shade
Mature size: 30 to 40 feet
Benefits and tolerances: Crossvine is both heat and cold tolerant; blooms attract bees, butterflies and birds
Seasonal interest: Evergreen leaves for winter structure and orange-yellow blooms from spring until fall
When to plant: Fall and spring