Habitat

• native to the eastern and south central United States
• hardy to zone 4
• Special Note: This species has demonstrated an invasive tendency in Connecticut, meaning it may escape from cultivation and naturalize in minimally managed areas. For more information, Click Here.

Habit and Form

• a deciduous climbing vine
• 30' to 40' tall or wide depending if growth is supported upright or creeping
• has rootlike holdfasts
• vigorous grower

Summer Foliage

• opposite deciduous leaves
• pinnately compound, 7, 9, or 11 leaflets
• coarsely toothed
• somewhat shiny, dark green color
• late to leaf out in spring

Autumn Foliage

• fall color is poor
• yellow-green

Flowers

• showy, tubular flowers
• 2.5" to 3" long and 1.5" wide at the mouth
• orange-scarlet colored
• born in clusters of 4 to a dozen at the terminals
• blooms on new growth
• July through August bloom period

Fruit

• a 3" to 5" long capsule about 0.75" wide
• somewhat shaped like a peapod that tapers more at the ends
• seeds are flattened with 2 wings
• change from green to tan

Bark

• light tan
• slightly exfoliating on old trunks

Culture

• very easy to grow
• not particular as to soil as long as its not waterlogged
• pruning back or thinning may be beneficial
• full sun

Landscape Use

• as a screen
• to cover rock piles
• train up a lattice or trellis
• useful for mid-late summer bloom
• flowers attract hummingbirds

Liabilities

• a rampant grower, so need room to develop
• late to leaf out, but this is a minor issue
• a poor climber that may need extra support to grow vertically
• can get some twig dieback in cold years in the colder part of zone 4
• no diseases or insects are particulary problematic

ID Features

• bundle scar in a U-shaped ring
• root-like aerial holdfasts typically abundant
• opposite leaves
• pinnately compound leaves, coarsely toothed
• trumpet-shaped red/orange flowers
• light tan bark

Propagation

• stratified seeds
• softwood cuttings
• root cuttings

Cultivars/Varieties

'Crimson Trumpet' - Has redder flowers than the species, no orange hue. Vigorous grower.

'Flava' - Has yellow or yellow-orange flowers. Otherwise similar to the species. Considered by many to be superior to the species.

'Madame Galen' (or 'Mme Galen') - A hybrid with C. grandiflora, this is a common commercial selection with vivid orange-apricot blooms produced all summer on self-fastening stems. The foliage is a clean green and the plant grows quickly.

'Variegata' - A form with white-marked leaves and orange flowers that is occasionally available.