Hats off to you Larry. I thought I new about petunias. Well I know they are annuals and come in different colors and sizes. Now I know the rest of the story. Thank you for such and interesting article.

Glad you enjoyed it, Lynn. There are lots of plants with interesting histories. I'll see if I can track down some more.

I look forward to any and all you can present. I love learning new things about plants.

Thanks for the encouragement, Lynn.

Wonderous history on petunias Larry I like to fool around with petunia seeds from my multicolour blooms. Usually they revert back to solid colours but sometimes they make swirly blooms. Nothing uniform but prettiful

Isn't it fun to sow seed from a hybrid to see what you'll get! I've also done it with zinnias. The most unusual bloom I got was one that only had a green center. No petals at all!

Larry, your article was very interesting. I really enjoyed learning the history of petunias.

I'll have to find some that like this Texas heat! If they're as tolerant as the zinnias, I'll have a chance!

Hee hee, I once kept a pot of petunias going for over 3 years! They were in a big pot sitting in a window on the back porch; they just completely took over that window! Ah, found a pic:

Now all we need is one that tastes terrible to those little worms that love to eat the blooms. Loved your article. Nice to know the history. Thank you very much.

Thanks for your nice comments, Christine, woofie, and Sharon.

Woofie, congratulations on your long-lived petunia! And thanks for the pic.

Reading through all the old newsletters and came across this article. Larry I can't tell you how much I enjoyed reading about the history of the petunia.

Our house had no landscaping to speak of 35 years ago, but ever since we started digging around the house about 10 years ago, volunteer petunias have sprung up everywhere. So these seeds had been laying dormant for only God knows how many years.

So, I was wondering if there is a name for these petunias, other than "old-fashioned". Would you have any idea? These have an almost sickly sweet smell after a rain and I don't believe they come true from seed.

West side of house in 2007


Around the patio (North side of house) in 2014


Front of house (Southeast side of house) in 2014


Color variations are anywhere from pure white to fuchsia to purple.

Such lovely petunia photos, Vickie! Glad you enjoyed the article. The only other names I know for these petunias is heirloom petunia and multiflora petunia.

Thanks, Larry!