An astonishingly easy to grow vine with fragrant night blooming white flowers. The moonflower can reach heights of 15-18 feet when supported (use an arbor or the side of a building!).
It is a quick growing perennial in the southern United States. In the northern United States it is grown as an annual. It flowers all season (season meaning summer in the northern United States).
The seeds of the moonflower are large, ivory/white colored and round.. about the size of a grapefruit seed, but much more smooth. You can buy the seeds in the spring (less than a dollar for ten seeds at Wal-Mart).
Tips on growing from seed:
- These flower seeds have a high germination rate, meaning that if you plant a bunch of them, a bunch of them will come up!
- Four to eight weeks before there will be no danger of freezing, soak seeds the night before planting them. I didn't do that and they still sprouted within 6 days however...
- Plant them 1/2-1" deep in a sterilized growing medium. Keep the soil moist (use warm water to speed it up) until the seed germinates. (14-21 days or sooner).
- After it is warm enough for them to go outside, plant them 6-10" apart because they take up a lot of space.
Also, you can directly sow these seeds in the soil 1/2"-1" deep after there is no danger of frost. Sow the seeds 6-10" apart and provided climbing support. Keep them watered until they germinate.
The moonflower dislikes being transplanted, so transplant with care. I found that transplanting when the soil is dry on a cool day is the least traumatic on these beauties.