I started seeds for m.g. "Heavenly Blue" and "Pearly Gates". I cannot find info on the internet if these specific varieties are invasive or not. Answer anyone? Thanks, Jane

No, no, and still more NO! They are annuals. Every once in a while, I'll get a volunteer from them, but it's very unusual. What area of the country are you? I think our cold weather tends to kill off the seeds here. You might get new seedlings next year if your climate is mild, but they're very easy to yank out.

No they are not invasive.

Thank you so much for your replies. I live in S.C. and didn't want all of the m.g. on shared fences I have with my neighbors getting into their yards.

Being in S.C. you may very well see new seedlings next spring. But that is what they'll be: seedlings. They CAN get pretty frisky if you don't yank them out when they're small, tho.

Well, some of my MG's jump out of the ground, others need coaxing. Heavenly Blue is one that I saved seeds from, and the seeds got old fast. I only hope I get seeds from this one that will grow next year. Anyone else have problems getting this one to put out viable seed? Arum

I have a terrible time getting HB's to grow! I collected a number of seeds last year, but so far only one has shown any signs of viability, and I'm not too sure it's actually going to grow. And I have trouble with the commercial seed, too. So it's not just me?

It just doesn't like us! It was my Mom's favorite, so I am determined to grow it.

Hee hee! My lone sprouted seed has actually broken ground!
Now I gotta see if I can get a few more to sprout. One is most definitely not enough!

woofie, I am happy for you. I planted a bag of Heavenly Blues, no germination, but then I got fresh seed and now have sprouts.

That's great, Arum!
I guess the seed doesn't keep well, then. Funny, because the other kinds seem to last a very long time. The I. nil seeds I started are at least 5 years old.

Yes, it's just like that for me. I have quite a stash of Mg's and some of them are really sturdy strains. There's some of them I haven't grown in a while, so who knows what will happen when I do.

Do you have to soak or scratch them prior to planting?

Depends on the species. The I. nils and I. purpureas generally do much better if scratched and soaked. I always start them in damp paper towels so I know for sure that they've sprouted before I plant them.

I have to say that here in zone 6A some mg's are extremely invasive. I have been battleing with milky way and joyce cobb for years. They multiply by the millions and I just can't get rid of them.. I like the japanese, the seeds don't over winter here.

I've done some mg's with the soak-and-scratch method and it works well!

moonflower ipomoea calonyction refuses to come back for me... The heavenly blue also refuses to come back.
But... Most morning glories are problematic in a southern garden. While they may be annuals... (some aren't), they produce a lot of seed which all comes up in staggered intervals next year...

Generally speaking, avoid morning glories anywhere that you might want to grow something else...

Every year I have tons of "volunteers" because I grow so many at a time in the same space .. so I hit them with weed killer before they can flower.

I use a pair of nail clippers on my MG seeds .. I just clip slivers off of two edges until the seed coat is broken then just plant .. no soaking or anything else and they come up in a few days to a week. The key is to break the seed coat and clip enough off so that the coat doesn't won't get stuck on the cotyledons because the come up so fast the seed coat doesn't really have time to soften.

Collect the seed pods to prevent the volunteer seedlings effect.

I spend time every day once pods start appearing cutting off every pod I don't want I can find - the volunteers show up in the area where I was growing 15 different cultivars in three large containers because I obviously missed some. No matter how vigilant I am I always get volunteers .. since I hit them all with weed killer when they start to show, I've never had any "get away" from me in the last 10 years. Also, now that I've changed the way I grow them using the masonry ladders it will be easier to keep track of them.