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If you love vines and the colour purple, then this plant is for you.
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Scientific name: Petrea volubilis
Common names:
Sandpaper Vine, Purple Wreath, Queen's Wreath, Fleur de Dieu (meaning "Flower of God")
Family: Verbenaceae
Origin: Tropical America (Mexico and Central America)
Category: Evergreen vine
Photo taken at: rooftop Secret Garden of 1-Utama
The genus "Petrea" is named in honour of Robert James Petre (1713-1742), 8th baron and well-known patron of botany who has a massive collection of exotic plants.
The epithet "volubilis" means twining.
“Petrea volubilis - The Sandpaper Vine”, a copyrighted post, was written for My Nice Garden blog by Autumn Belle @ http://www.mynicegarden.com/ on February 26th, 2013
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The flowers emerge from the axils of leaves. Flowering is profuse. The flowers are borne in large, tapering clusters, the racemes can be as long as 1 ft. There are between 15-30 flowers arranged in pairs in each raceme. They appear to open dark purple and remain so for many days, thereafter slowly changing to a lighter grey. The actual flowers have 5 petals, purple in colour with a white centre. After the purple corollas drop off, they reveal the grey calices (sepals).
The flowers attract bees and butterflies.
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Light: Full sun to partial shade
Soil: Moist but well-draining
Propagation: Stem or root cuttings
With a strong support, it can reach very tall. Once established, it grows tall and dense, with vines twined over its branches. It will spread over a large area when left unprunned. Without support, it can be trained into a shrub or small tree. It can be grown on the ground under a pergola, in a container or hanging basket.
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Spectacular purple and grey flowers against lush green leaves.
Flowers that look like Wisteria.
