General Informations
Ipomoea lobata, the firecracker vine is a species of flowering plant in the family Convolvulaceae, native to Mexico and Brazil. This vine is cited in Flora Brasiliensis by Carl Friedrich Philipp von Martius.
Growing to 5 m (16 ft) tall, I. lobata is a perennial climber often cultivated in temperate regions as an annual. It has toothed and lobed leaves (hence lobata) and one-sided racemes of flowers, opening red and fading to yellow, cream and white. These colours are graded down the length of the flower spike. The effect is like a firework, hence one of its popular names “firecracker vine”.
I. lobata requires a minimum temperature of 5 °C (41 °F), and a warm, sheltered spot in full sun (either south- or west-facing). It has gained the Royal Horticultural Society’s Award of Garden Merit.
It is closely related to two other popular, award-winning climbing plants, Ipomoea indica (“blue dawn flower”) and Ipomoea tricolor (“morning glory”).
