Is my passionflower dead???

[kitsmummy]

Hi, I am a new gardner (eg haven't really got a clue what i'm doing, but am enjoying it). Last September I planted a passionflower to grow up the side of a wall. Couldn't plant it any earlier cos garden not ready til then. It seemed happy enough and gave us some flowers. This year though it looks brown and dead and I don't know if it's going to come to life or if it really is dead. It gets the sun in a fairly sheltered garden so I was expecting to see something happening by now, or is it still too early? thanks

[Tangle]

May well be too early. I moved into a new house a couple of years back and really hacked back a big old passion flower (like sawed through a stem 1.5" across!). It thrived. Overwinter this year I've cut it back to that one big stem again - and so far it looks like its still dead (and I'm in Hants), but I'm reasonably confident it'll spring into action as the weather warms up.

As long as it got established before the winter you should see some signs of life in the next month or two - maybe sooner if it doesn't get too cold again.

[kitsmummy]

great, thanks

[loggedout]

I cut mine back hard last year, thoughtI'd killed it but it came back with a vengeance (sp?), growing now but got frosted a couple of nights ago at some parts. Still alive!

[Mspontipine]

Mine still looks dead too. Got high hopes for it this year! Last year it grew rapantly but not a single flower!

[Bramshott]

I'm really hoping it's too early, because mine is looking lifeless too. Let's all keep our fingers crossed. Mine has been fine the past few years, but this winter has been a cold one . . .

Sometimes they shoot again from lower down and you have to untangle the brown bits higher up and cut them out or it looks messy.

[meltedmarsbars]

There's one against a friends wall near here that fruits! Edible fruits!!

[curiouscat]

I'm sure it'll come back to life, lucky you. To be on the safe side you could try feeding the roots with a general purpose liquid. Mine died a year ago but sent out underground shoots so basically relocated itself in the next generation.

[Mspontipine]

Fed mine, poked at it hopefully....

[fishie]

mine isn't going yet and it is on a very very sheltered wall (it is with an avocado tree, acer and chinese virg creeper which are all fine)

[mooseloose]

Too early I think. I pull it up every year, and it always sprouts!

[fishie]

ooer mspontipine this thread is so innocuous, i am v intruiged.

[mistlethrush]

If a young passionflower is set back by a cold winter, it can even take until June to start getting going again. Once they are a bit better established its not so bad.

[Mspontipine]

I know fishie!! What it was was I'd done a gorgeous link to a lovely picture I'd taken of a passion flower but it had my full name on it and I panicked! I did wonder whether to leave it as on a thread about passion flowers I know I am amongst true friends but I just couldn't do it!

I have always been completely anonamous (sp??) on here so feel can really talk about stuff on here in ways that are impossible in rl.

On other subjects not passion flowers of course!

[kitsmummy]

Oh thanks Mistlethrush, it was a young'un so maybe that's what's happened

[PistachioLemon]

Mine has also really been caught by the hard frost this year and is still looking quite dead. Poked it a bit this afternoon, but I think I'm going to have to be harsh and chop it back and hope for the best. To be honest it was getting a bit unruly so I don't mind too much! In my last garden something similar happened one year and it sprang back to life a bit later on.

[kittywise]

It's still a bit early.

My passionflower looked really really dead for a long time a few years back i really thought I had to pull it up, then all of a sudden it decided to grow again!

[Mspontipine]

I believe the time to prune is when it does finally begin to grow again - I'm going to have a look see if I can find the bit again...

[Mspontipine]

Here's the science bit!!

Apparantly they like tomato feed - will give mine a bit soon. Arrrr a stressed plant will flower more readily than a comfy one! Mine must be well comfy!!

[Mspontipine]

I've now added myself a profile page so I can share pictures - I've put one of my favourite passionflower pictures on it

[kitsmummy]

Oooh v pretty.

Mine's still looking dead

[Pannacotta]

kits mine is not very alive looking but I think they are just late into leaf.
If you gently sratch at the stem and it is green then its alive, if its brown then its dead...

[Mspontipine]

This morning mine has tiny ickle red and green buddy leaves - hurrah!! Isn't spring a miracle!!

I cut mine down to a stalk approx 50cm high a couple of weeks ago.

Anyone else?

[Pannacotta]

Mine has good signs of life, as predicted they seem to be just late into leaf....

[Mspontipine]

Cheers Pannacotta - I've been going round gently scratching stems on everything to see if they're still alive!!