Sparse foliage and clinging tendrils take cup-and-saucer vine (Cobaea scandens) up to 26 feet in a single year, covering old walls and pergolas with abundant bloom for most of the year. Give it full sun, rich well-drained soil and shelter from frost, and it flowers on and on.
| Name | Cobaea scandens |
|---|---|
| Family | Polemoniaceae |
| Type | climbing perennial or annual vine |
| Height | 8 inches to 3 feet (0.2 to 1 m) |
| Exposure | full sun |
| Soil | rather rich and well drained |
| Flowering | mid-spring to mid-autumn |
| Foliage | deciduous or evergreen, depending on the climate |
Thanks to its rapid growth and the ease for which it is cared for, cup-and-saucer vine will enchant you with its incredible ornamental impact.
Sowing is best at the end of winter in a sheltered place, most often from February to April.
Transplanting to the ground usually happens in spring, after the last frost spells.
Because this vine is killed by frost but flowers for months on end, everything turns on doing the right thing at the right moment. Here is the whole cycle, from seed tray to overwintering pot.
| Stage | When | What to do |
|---|---|---|
| Sow under cover | Late winter to early spring | Sow in a sheltered, frost-free place |
| Plant out | Mid-spring to late spring | Transplant once the last frosts have passed, in a sunny spot |
| Flowering and deadheading | Mid-spring to mid-autumn | Remove faded flowers before they set seed to keep new buds coming |
| Prune and bring pots in | Late autumn, before the first frosts | Move to a cool spot that never freezes and water only sparingly |
| Return outdoors | Late spring | Harden off in a sheltered corner for about a week |
Keep to this rhythm and the same plant can flower for you year after year.
Cup-and-saucer vines don’t need much care, but these few good practices should help you produce many blooms over a long span of time.
Remove faded flowers before they set seed, and the vine keeps pushing out new buds.
Cobaea climbs by clinging tendrils, so give it netting, wires or thin canes rather than a bare wall or a thick post.
If it freezes in your are and you wish to protect your cup-and-saucer vine from one year to the next, this is what you need to do:
A frost-free greenhouse, cold porch or lightly lit unheated garage suits the overwintering plant far better than a warm living room.
Let the compost dry a little between those sparing waterings, because cool damp roots rot easily.
Move the pot back outside only once night frosts have finished, hardening it off in a sheltered corner for a week or so first.
Native to Mexico, cup-and-saucer vine only needs to be watered in case of dry and hot weather.
This plant presents abundant and plentiful blooming for the most part of the year.
Its rapid growth, up to 16 to 26 feet (5 to 8 meters) per year, make this plant a great choice to cover old walls, pergolas and other large surfaces.
This is an excellent plant to pair with wrought iron garden ornaments. The sparse leafage highlights the ornament while still fueling blooms!
Many common parasites attack cup-and-saucer vines, such as thrips, aphids and red spider mite or even scale insects.
Hose or wipe the vine down before you carry the pot indoors.
Young transplants are a favourite of slugs and snails, which can strip a stem overnight before it reaches its support.
Be careful during dry spells, especially for pots. Lack of water might interrupt growth of your cup-and-saucer vine.
Credits for images shared to Nature & Garden (all edits by Gaspard Lorthiois):
Flower close-up by Sonja Kalee under Pixabay license
Young cup-and-saucer flowers by Светлана Гурьева under Pixabay license
Columns decorated with cup-and-saucer by chuck b. under © CC BY 2.0
