{"id":3140,"date":"2020-08-03T06:15:07","date_gmt":"2020-08-03T14:15:07","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/gardenersapprentice.com\/gardeningtips\/?p=3140"},"modified":"2020-08-03T06:15:07","modified_gmt":"2020-08-03T14:15:07","slug":"twining-susan","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/gardenersapprentice.com\/gardeningtips\/twining-susan\/","title":{"rendered":"Twining Susan"},"content":{"rendered":"

I am not always wildly successful at growing plants from seeds.\u00a0 This is because, I don\u2019t have a full-fledged seed-starting set-up indoors and I do have a full-time job.\u00a0 Excuses aside, I am much better at letting plants sow themselves outdoors and grubbing out the occasional unwanted seedlings.\u00a0\u00a0 That method ensures that I can lavish praise on myself for the success of my morning glories or nigella, without even the slightest guilt pang about doing nothing to ensure that success.<\/p>\n

I defied the odds this year and started some black-eyed Susan vines\u2014Thunbergia alata\u2014from seed.\u00a0 I bought the seeds in late winter in a moment of weakness inspired by the lovely front-of-the-packet illustration, which showed an array of multi-colored flowers cascading over the edges of a pot.\u00a0 My winter-weary soul saw the promise of spring in those seeds and I bought them.<\/p>\n

If you aren\u2019t familiar with black-eyed Susan vine, sometimes also known as clockvine, you are missing something special.\u00a0 The nickname comes from the flowers\u2019 perceived resemblance to annual and perennial black-eyed Susans, which are members of the rudbeckia genus.\u00a0 The most popular rudbeckias boast the familiar golden-orange petals surrounding black centers.\u00a0 I have loved the wild ones, Rudebeckia hirta, since I was a little girl.<\/p>\n

Black-eyed Susan vines are not related to rudbeckias, which are part of the daisy family.\u00a0 Instead, the vines are part of the Acanthaceae or acanthus family.\u00a0 Native to Africa, Madagascar and southern Asia, Thunbergia alata arrived in the United States in 1823.\u00a0 It caught on\u2014literally and figuratively\u2014taking part in the great Victorian vogue for vines and climbing plants.\u00a0 Though the plants are perennial in warm winter climates, they are mostly grown as annuals these days.\u00a0 They are vigorous, but not unruly, and if you provide appropriate support, they will grow six to eight feet tall.\u00a0 There is no need for fussing with the stems, as they twine in a clockwise direction around any support.\u00a0 Mine have gone beyond the short trellis I provided and are currently embracing my back porch railing.<\/p>\n

The mixture that I picked combined several black-eyed Susan vine varieties, and as the vines have grown, I can tell which is which by the leaves.\u00a0 They are either vaguely triangular or slightly more rounded and generally toothed or serrated on the edges.\u00a0 Each flower, with five petals joined at the base to form a shallow trumpet, surrounds a dark center.\u00a0 Individual blooms are about 1.5 inches wide, but mature vines produce many flowers over the course of the season.\u00a0 My vines, planted in late spring, suffered from some intermittent neglect earlier in the season, so they are really just getting going at the end of July.\u00a0 Now that I am paying attention, I am expecting great things from them in August.<\/p>\n

The range of black-eyed Susan vine colors is not extremely large, with cheerful shades of yellow and golden orange predominating. The mix that I chose also incorporates a white-flowered variety for contrast.<\/p>\n

If you like the looks of black-eyed Susan vine, the best way to explore the range of available varieties is to grow the plants from seed.\u00a0 This also allows you to select single colors or create your own color combinations.\u00a0 Find cool relief in the white flowers of \u2018Alba\u2019.\u00a0 In the pink range, you can buy varieties like \u2018Blushing Susie\u2019, which runs to tones of cream and apricot-pink in each bloom, or its sibling, \u2018Sunny Susie Rose Sensation\u2019, featuring gradations of rose pink.\u00a0 \u2018African Sunset\u2019 is similar to the \u2018Sunny Susie\u2019s, but the colors are warmer and richer.\u00a0 \u2018Arizona Rose Sensation\u2019 is also rose pink, but accented with a darker pink ring around the black center.\u00a0 It is quite dramatic.<\/p>\n

Drama also reigns supreme in a couple of variegated varieties.\u00a0 Tangerine Slice A-Peel, part of a trademarked series, features orange petals edged in yellow.\u00a0 \u2018Sunny Susie Amber Stripes\u2019 has the same yellow petal edges, but the main petal color is closer to amber than golden-orange.<\/p>\n

For flat-out vibrant color, chose Lemon A-Peel, sometimes sold as \u2018Lemon Star\u2019, or Orange A-Peel, also known as \u2018Orange Wonder\u2019.\u00a0 The names, whether registered or trademarked, can be confusing.\u00a0 I generally pick plants or seeds based on whether the colors catch my fancy.<\/p>\n

You can certainly make use of vertical space and grow your vines up a short tuteur or trellis.\u00a0 They also make wonderful hanging basket subjects, cascading happily over the sides of any container.<\/p>\n

Like many free-blooming plants, black-eyed Susan vines like sunshine.\u00a0 They are also thirsty, with leaves that droop at the drop of a hat, so provide regular water when temperatures are high and\/or rainfall is low.\u00a0 Feed regularly with an organic fertilizer labeled for flowering plants.<\/p>\n

At the moment you may find relatively mature black-eyed Susan vines in local nurseries or garden centers, ready for planting in the nearest container.\u00a0 If you search the depleted seed racks at the back of the store, you may also find some leftover seeds.\u00a0 Most of us still have plenty of growing season left, and you could do worse than to snap up those packets and get the seeds going.\u00a0 Next spring, find excellent varieties at Select Seeds, 180 Stickney Hill Road, Union, CT 06076; (800) 684-0395; www.selectseeds.com<\/a>.\u00a0 Free print catalog.\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\"black-eyed<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

I am not always wildly successful at growing plants from seeds.\u00a0 This is because, I don\u2019t have a full-fledged seed-starting set-up indoors and I do have a full-time job.\u00a0 Excuses aside, I am much better at letting plants sow themselves outdoors and grubbing out the occasional unwanted seedlings.\u00a0\u00a0 That method ensures that I can lavish … Read more<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[4,6,2,3],"tags":[2352,2351,2349,2350,274,1941,91,2348],"class_list":["post-3140","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-fall","category-general-interest","category-spring","category-summer","tag-acanthus-family","tag-annual-vines","tag-black-eyed-susan-vine","tag-clock-vine","tag-container-gardening","tag-flowering-vines","tag-summer-flowers","tag-thunbergia-alata"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/gardenersapprentice.com\/gardeningtips\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3140","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/gardenersapprentice.com\/gardeningtips\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/gardenersapprentice.com\/gardeningtips\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/gardenersapprentice.com\/gardeningtips\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/gardenersapprentice.com\/gardeningtips\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=3140"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/gardenersapprentice.com\/gardeningtips\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3140\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":3142,"href":"https:\/\/gardenersapprentice.com\/gardeningtips\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3140\/revisions\/3142"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/gardenersapprentice.com\/gardeningtips\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=3140"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/gardenersapprentice.com\/gardeningtips\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=3140"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/gardenersapprentice.com\/gardeningtips\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=3140"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}