Question: I have a Passiflora Lavender Lady growing on the east wall. I would like to know how and when I prune them and what fertilizer to use. Please tell me when they bloom in Las Vegas. I planted them in the spring.
Passionflower is really an underused plant that will do well in many urban desert gardens if you select the right one, put it right place and care for it. This particular passionflower, Lavender Lady, is only an ornamental and not raised for its fruit.
There is another passionflower that is confused in the nursery trade with Lavender Lady. This passionflower has much older origins and is called the Amethyst passionflower. The flowers are nearly identical and so easily confused.
If you actually do have Lavender Lady and not Amethyst, your plant is much more likely to survive here in a protected location. Lavender Lady might handle temperatures as low as the teens. If it is Amethyst, it will probably not survive this next winter.
Lavender Lady is usually sterile and fruitless. Lavender Lady should bloom primarily in the spring and fall months when it is a bit cooler.
Bob Morris is an associate professor with the University of Nevada Cooperative Extension.
Archived Editions| Advertising | Contact The Staff
