Ipomoea quamoclit “Cardinal”
Cardinal climber, cypress vine, hummingbird vine, feathered quamoclit: its foliage, so finely cut that it resembles fern lace, has earned it these poetic nicknames. Small, perfectly formed scarlet stars stand out against this airy, cloudlike vegetation—a contrast few annual climbers can match.
Characteristics:
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Fast-growing climber: up to 3 metres in a single season, ideal for covering trellises, pergolas and fences.
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Star-shaped flowers: bright scarlet red, all summer until the first frosts.
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Lace-like foliage: very finely divided, light and airy.
Precautions:
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Morning glory seeds are toxic if ingested: they contain alkaloids and must never be consumed. Keep them out of reach of children and pets.
- Frost-tender plant, destroyed by the first frosts: it is an annual in our climate.
Sowing advice:
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Position: full sun; it needs warmth to flower well.
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Soil: light, well-drained, poor to moderately fertile. Important: in soil that is too rich, it produces abundant foliage at the expense of flowers. Do not fertilise.
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Method: no stratification is necessary, but soak the seeds in lukewarm water for 12 to 24 hours before sowing to soften their hard seed coat and significantly improve germination. Sow indoors from March or directly in the ground after the last frosts (April–May), at a depth of 0.5–1 cm. Germination in 10 to 20 days at 20–25 °C. See how to sow your seeds.
Planting advice:
- Place it at the base of a support when planting: the plant climbs by twining its stems and quickly seeks something to cling to.
Care advice:
- Water regularly but moderately. Guide the young stems onto their support during the first few weeks.
Beneficial combinations:
- It combines well with other annual climbers such as nasturtiums, and can provide light shade for plants that are sensitive to direct sunlight.
Benefits for biodiversity:
- Its red tubular flowers are designed for long-tongued pollinators: in our climate, butterflies and hawkmoths benefit from them, particularly the hummingbird hawkmoth.
- Its dense foliage on a support provides shelter appreciated by beneficial insects. See combining flowers with the vegetable garden.
Uses:
- For adorning fences, wire fencing, trellises and arbors; ideal in a cottage garden or in a pot on a balcony with a support.
Symbolism:
The cardinal climber symbolises vivid passion and fleeting beauty: each flower lasts only one day, but new ones appear continuously throughout the summer.
Harvesting your own seeds:
Leave a few flowers to form their small seed capsules, then harvest them once they are brown and dry, before they open. Clearly label the packet, given the toxicity of the seeds. See how to store your seeds.
Commitment to Quality: at SemiSauvage - Permaculture, we grow and select our seeds with respect for all living things as our guiding principle. Based near the Auvergne Volcanoes, we choose reproducible, non-hybrid varieties, tested for their germination rate, carefully sorted and packaged, with no chemical treatment. Our belief: to restore gardeners’ ability to resow, year after year, seeds that truly belong to them.
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