Family: Bignoniaceae
Common name: Flamevine, Orange trumpet vine, Flaming trumpet, Orange Bignonia, Orange shower trumpet, Venusta creeper, Flame flower, Orange trumpet creeper, Venusta flower, Golden shower, Golden shower vine, Bignonia venusta, Vanestara flower
Flamevine is a stunning flowering vine that can transform a trellis or pergola in your garden with its abundant bunches of flame orange flowers.
This plant is native to Brazil, but they are garden favorites all over the world because of their vigorous growth habit, and breathtakingly beautiful flowers.
Plant characteristics
These plants can grow really fast reaching a height of up to 10 meters, climbing on fences, trellises, pergolas, or even surrounding vegetation with a brown, woody stem.
Leaves are dark green and glossy with 2-3 leaflets that are 7-8 cm long, with the central one modified in to a tendril for climbing. Flowers are flame-orange or deep intense vermillion in color, growing in clusters of 20 or more flowers, so large that they droop down from the plant because of the weight.
Flamevine flowers are tubular, each one about 6-9 cm long with 4 distinct petals that are curled back very beautifully. Stamens and style are very prominent, orange in color.
Once they are in bloom, the plant provides a visual and gustatory feast for small birds, bees, butterflies, and insect that come in large numbers to feast on these flowers.
After pollination, the Orange flamevine produces small seed capsules that are about 3 cm long. But these are not very commonly seen in garden plants.
Gardening tips
Flamevine plants prefer bright sunlight for flowering, but they can also tolerate partial shade or filtered sunlight. They are reasonably drought-tolerant, but need regular watering and fertilization during the flowering season when the plant feeds well to produce flowers in abundance.
Deadheading or removing spent flowers will keep the plant healthy and beautiful. The beautiful name of this plant comes from the Greek word ‘pyros’ which means fire, and ‘stegia’ which means covering. The word Venusta indicates its beauty. The plant can indeed cover large areas with its beautiful fiery flowers.
Uses
These plants have some medicinal uses in traditional Brazilian medicine and is used to treat inflammations, cute, wounds, insect bites, skin disorders, cough, cold, viral infections, diarrhea, jaundice, and other respiratory ailments.
Though Flamevines are loved as ornamental, garden plants, they can become invasive in the wild due to its vigorous growth and climbing habit that can smother surrounding vegetation.
Propagation
Propagation is through seeds and stem cuttings. Layering is also a very successful method, where you make a small incision on a low-growing stem, and bury that wounded part in the soil while still attached to the parent plant.
Once that part develops roots, it can be removed from the parent plant and replanted.
Photographed at: GKVK College of Agriculture, Bangalore
