June 28, 2024
Last year I planted Mexican flame vine (Senecio confusus) at the base of the deck and impatiently waited all summer for it to do anything. And then, oh my gosh, it exploded in fall with pumpkin-orange flowers that drew in bees and butterflies like bears to honey.
Our first freeze came late — not until early January — and so I got to enjoy the flowers for months. On Christmas Day they were glorious. I took these pics on January 5th, right before the end, as the flowers fed late-migrating monarch butterflies.
Honeybees were busy among the frilly-capped flowers too.
It was quite a payoff for an annual vine. Planting it against the deck meant I got to enjoy its beauty every day from October through early January. I could even see it while sitting at the kitchen table.
A red admiral butterfly added to the orange extravaganza.
I imagine many gardeners grow Mexican flame vine from seed, but I planted mine from a 1-gallon pot. A wire trellis against the deck gave it an easy way to climb.
Full sun and once-a-week watering kept it happy, although I probably gave it supplemental drinks from the hose during the hellish part of last summer. I can’t remember now.
When the first hard freeze finally came, I said goodbye to this beautiful vine. Because it’s an annual in my zone 8b (or 9a, as they now claim), I pulled it out during the big cutback. For some reason I didn’t plant another one this spring. Instead I fell for a red ‘Lady Margaret’ passionflower, upon whose leaves Gulf fritillary butterflies are eagerly laying eggs. Passionflowers are their larval host plants, so I’m still helping out butterflies. And hopefully this fall I’ll see another good bloom show. We’ll see!
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