This vine is grown best from zone 9 and up (or is it down?), say to zone 12, and the plant is popular with butterfly gardeners in the US which means it is widely available in nurseries (looks like Calif-Sue could grow it). If you try to find seeds, you will be told the plant is sterile and will not grow from seed. This is a bit of a mystery to me because my vine does have seeds that germinate. Also the people in the US tell me that their plants have very little fragrance, but the fragrance is one of the first things i notice when i walk into the garden during a bloom. Perhaps the plants in the US have been genetically altered or crossbred, this is only a guess. I found my plant growing in a garden located in the foothills of the Volcan de Colima (Fuego) close to where i live. The vine also grows wild in various other parts of Mexico (like the El Tajin region of Veracruz). I asked for and was given a cutting and it took off beautifully. Also, there is a gardener in Pakistan who is able to grow this vine from the seeds it produces. I have a gardener friend who lives in Illinois (zone 5) who is determined to grow this plant. She found one to purchase in a nursery and is growing it in a container that she can take inside during the winters there. This is an experiment still in progress, and i hope it is going to work for her. Like Takiyyah (lovesblooms), i was surprised to come across a vine with daisy-like flowers, but it is definitely an Asteraceae. Ain't life grand? Thank you all for your comments and welcomes.
to ATP!
