- Type
- Trees & Vines
- Difficulty
- Moderate
- Season
- Summer
- Sowing
- Plant a sapling
Trumpet creeper
Campsis grandiflora
Orange trumpets — the summer vine that climbs a wall
Trumpet creeper is a deciduous woody vine that climbs walls and large trees. Short aerial rootlets from the stem nodes grip any rough surface, and in high summer the orange trumpet-shaped flowers open in masses. The flowers do not shrivel; each drops whole, still trumpet-shaped, so the scatter on the ground is what makes people look up. The Donguibogam lists it in the Wood section as 紫葳 and gives 凌霄花 as another name. It describes a vine that first leans on a large tree and, after many years, reaches the crown and flowers there, the flowers yellow-red, at their height in midsummer, gathered and dried for use. The old story that its pollen blinds an eye it enters has been handed down for a long time, but examinations of the pollen's structure found nothing hook-like. Any pollen irritates an eye, though, so do not rub your eyes with hands that have handled the flowers. It is not a flower to eat, so this entry goes only as far as growing and handling it in the garden.
Year-Round Calendar
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Where It Grows
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Origin
The mountains of Central and East China are its native range, and this is also where the flowers, known as lingxiao hua, are gathered. Jiangsu, Zhejiang and Hubei are the producing regions. Harvest July, August
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Major producer
It has long been planted on walls and garden pavilions in the central region and southward. Harvest July, August
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- Major producer It is planted in gardens and at temples under the name nozenkazura.
Native to east-central China, it was introduced to Korea and Japan long ago and trained up walls and over garden pavilions. The American trumpet creeper (Campsis radicans), native to North America, is a separate species with smaller, longer-tubed flowers and far better cold tolerance, and garden cultivars crossing the two are common, so shading both onto one map mixes the distributions together.
- Optimum
- 20~30℃
- Range
- 10~35℃
- Hardiness
- Half-hardy
A deciduous woody vine that loves summer heat and sun. Its flowers open at the tips of shoots grown that same year, so even when the shoot tips are killed back over winter, new shoots come up from below and still bloom. In the inland central region and north of it, however, where winters are very cold, it freezes back year after year and the vine never runs far, and in shade it makes length without flowering much.
Harvested 2–3 years after planting. Two or three years must pass after a young plant goes in before it flowers. The month of planting and the month of bloom are not in the same year. Because the flowers come on shoots grown that same year, the old wood is cut back short between winter and early spring.
In Korea Central Korea and south
Widely planted in the central region and southward. It will grow in Seoul and Gyeonggi as well, given a spot sheltered from winter wind such as the base of a wall, but in the mountains of Gangwon it freezes back every year and seldom flowers.
How to grow
- Light
- A south face in sun all day. In shade it runs to vine and flowers sparsely
- Soil and depth
- Free-draining ground; it is not fussy beyond that. Only avoid places where water sits
- Spacing
- One plant covers several bays of wall. Allow 2m or more between plants and fix the width of the support in advance
- Watering
- Keep it from drying out through the first year only. Once established it carries itself on rainfall
- Feeding
- A spadeful of compost around the base in early spring. Heavy nitrogen gives vine and few flowers
- Harvest
- Pick the open flowers in July and August. They are gathered to dry, not to eat. Spent flowers drop whole, so sweeping them up keeps the yard tidy
What makes the difference. Flowers come on the current season's growth. Cut the old wood back hard between winter and early spring and the new shoots carry more of them
Why this one is harder. The aerial rootlets work into wall finishes and gutters, and suckers rise from the roots well away from the plant. Train it onto a support rather than the wall itself, and cut back both the extending stems and the root suckers every year
Common problems
- Aphids You will see Colonies on shoot tips and flower buds, turning sticky What to do Wash them off with a jet of water; if they persist, use an egg-yolk oil spray. Ants running up and down the stem are the signal
- Scale insects You will see Millet-like shells crowding the older stems What to do Scrub them off with a brush in winter and thin the old wood. It worsens where tangled growth stops the air moving
- Powdery mildew You will see A dusting of white spreads across the upper leaf surface What to do Thin the vine for airflow and remove affected leaves. Do not water over the foliage
This page describes how a crop is grown and used. It does not claim health effects for any food, nor is it intended to prevent or treat disease. Component and study notes are references only and do not mean the same result occurs in people. Consult a medical professional about health concerns.
Health Benefits
The old record — jawi (紫葳). The Donguibogam lists this plant in the Wood section as 紫葳 and gives 凌霄花 as another name. It records the nature as slightly cold and the taste as sour, adding that some call it sweet, and no toxicity. It says the plant grows everywhere, that it first climbs by leaning on a large tree, and that after many years it reaches the crown and flowers there. The flowers are described as yellow-red and at their height in midsummer, and the entry notes that they were gathered and dried for use. This is a historical medical record and differs from how it is judged today.
How it climbs. Trumpet creeper climbs by short aerial rootlets from the stem nodes that grip a rough surface. It is a different mechanism from a vine that twines by tendrils, which is why it cannot hold on a smooth face and why it marks brick or timber. This is an account of form.
Sorting out the pollen story. The story that trumpet creeper pollen blinds an eye it enters has been handed down for a long time, but examinations of the pollen's structure found nothing hook-like. Any pollen irritates an eye, though, so hands that have handled the flowers should stay away from the face. This is where the handed-down story and the confirmed picture part company.
Nutrition
- Water (most of an open flower) — why the bulk falls away so sharply on drying
- Woody fibre (in stems of several years) — why the vine thickens and hardens with each season
Not a flower to eat Trumpet creeper is not a food plant. It belongs in this guide as the most conspicuous vine of the summer garden and as a plant recorded in the old medical text. Brewing the flowers as a tea or dressing them as a dish is not covered here.
The story about the pollen The old story that trumpet creeper pollen blinds an eye it enters has been handed down for a long time, but examinations of the pollen's structure found nothing hook-like. Any pollen irritates an eye, though, so do not rub your eyes with hands that have handled the flowers or pruned the vine.
The flowers drop whole Trumpet creeper flowers do not shrivel on the vine; each falls whole, still trumpet-shaped. Within days they pile up underneath, so training the vine directly over a path or a parking space makes more work later.
Pairings
○ A solid support — It needs a rough surface for the aerial rootlets to grip, and cannot hold on smooth glass or metal. Set a trellis or heavy wire slightly off the wall. A mature vine is heavy, so build the support properly from the start.
○ A south-facing wall in full sun — It flowers in proportion to the sun it gets. Facing north or under a large tree it runs to vine with few flowers. The display reads best once it reaches the top of the wall, so clear the low side shoots.
○ A pergola or garden pavilion — The foliage closes over and casts real shade in high summer. Trained up a pavilion post or pergola it gives flowers and shade together, and once the leaves fall the light comes back.
△ Not eaten — Do not dress the flowers, leaves or stems as a dish or brew them as a tea. This is a garden plant to look at, and its presence in an old medical text does not make it an ingredient. Watch that children do not put fallen flowers in their mouths.
△ Eyes and hands — Do not rub your eyes with hands that have touched the flowers or the pollen. Wear gloves when cutting the vine or picking flowers, and wash your hands afterwards. Some people find the stem sap reddens their skin.
△ Wall finishes and gutters — The aerial rootlets work into wall finishes and gutter joints, leaving marks and blocking water. Do not fix it flat to the wall; put up a support and train it onto that. Pulling an attached vine off takes the finish with it, so cut it, let it dry, and lift it away.
Varieties
- Campsis grandiflora (species) — Large flowers that flare wide on a short tube. The species of the old gardens
- Campsis radicans (species) — A longer, narrower tube and a deeper red. Introduced from North America
- Hybrid forms (species) — Crosses of the two, commonly sold as garden stock
Source: Donguibogam, Wood Section 紫葳 · Korea National Arboretum species information system