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Cascading climber, gardener's delight
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Pale pink blooms of Podranea enhance the beauty of gardens
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PODRANEA is a climber of infinite charm. It has cascading bunches of flowers - each a large, single bloom. Whatever its blooming pattern, the plant is an attractive asset to any garden.
It is usually found in the wild.
Podranea, belonging to the Bigoniaceae species, is a beautiful plant, a native of Zimbabwe and South Africa. It grows there on rocky hills, flowering between autumn and spring, with a hardier variety blooming between summer and autumn.
The plant has long, thin stems that grow up to 15 feet, with shapely pinnate leaves. Bunches of pale pink flowers, with thin lined throats, hang at the ends of the stems.
Podranea brycei, also called the Zimbabwe creeper, has pale pink flowers, about three inches across, with a hairy throat.
Podranea ricasoliana has a bulbous, inflated calyx, and the flowers are about three and a half inches in size, with wavy edges. Here the throat is smooth, with no hairs, a glabrous situation.
The plant grows rapidly, easily scaling walls or a framework, a mass of green leaves highlighted by the big flowers. A sunny position is preferred although too much heat is not ideal for the plant. The cooler months of the year - are ideal for Podranea to flourish. Too much water and mulchy soil have a detrimental effect on flowering.
It encourages more leaves than flowers. The plant is a fine addition to a gardener's collection.
RUPA GOPAL
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