Last week’s puzzler, like the 3 before it, is a HUMMINGBIRD magnet! You probably know that there are some flowers that the tiny birds can’t stay away from and red flowers are especially appealing to them. This flower is called Trumpet Creeper and is a fast-growing perennial vine.
Trumpet creeper vines take from 5-7 years to reach maturity and won’t usually bloom until then. In addition to trumpet creeper, it is also called trumpet vine, cow vine, foxglove vine, hell vine, devil’s shoestring and its Latin name of Campsis radicand. Obviously some of its names suggest an evil plant! The original name of trumpet creeper comes from its lovely red or orangish flowers that are tubular shaped, like a trumpet. The other names–hell vine and devil’s shoestring come because it is such an aggressive colonizer and will wind itself around whatever is in its path, be that a fence, other plants, telephone poles, houses, barns or anything nearby, climbing up by way of aerial rootlets. On structures, this can cause damage. For that reason, some people consider it invasive and warn against planting it in one’s yard. It is however, native to eastern North America as far north as Ohio and South Dakota. It is useful to help control erosion and of course, is always attractive to hummingbirds, who come readily to drink its sweet nectar. In addition, it is the food source for a sphinx moth called Paratraea plebeja. (Talk about a mouthful! I’m not even going to begin to try to pronounce that!)
Do you have experience with trumpet creeper? Have you managed to keep it in check in your yard or garden? What are your thoughts on this? As always, I would love to hear from you! Please use the comment box below to let me know your thoughts.
See you again soon! Have a fabulous weekend! Happy August!
We had trumpet vines in our yard when I was a child. Absolutely gorgeous flower.
It is a gorgeous flower! Did you get to watch the hummingbirds visit it when you were a child?